Sorry About That Harry
by Nigelcat1
Summary: Harry kills Voldemort before Dumbledore wants him killed and it messed up his plans. He then has Harry given a life sentence in Azkaban to teach him a lesson. Betrayed by EVERYONE Harry makes some new surprising allies and then tries to live his own life the way he wants it.


SORRY ABOUT THAT HARRY

Everything belongs to JKRowling except the mad plots and the occasional character I have added. I make no money on this and just write to express my warped sense of imagination. 4/19/13

Chapter 1 – Dumbledore's Surprise

"Oh Harry, I am so sorry, so very sorry that it has to be this way," said Hermione Granger, "But Professor Dumbledore knows all about these things. He's made a life study of it after all," she added as if this would somehow soften the blow.

A weary, bloodied, broken in body and spirit Harry Potter looked up at his former "girl best mate" in disbelief before saying, "So let me get this straight. I live a life in hell, grow up as an abused kid, the knowledge of the Magical World kept from me, I was not really given any important and/or necessary information to help, spent five years at school going through various "tests" and forced into "adventures" all the while getting ragged on and slandered by most of the school most of the time, not to mention the general public, been lied to, been shamelessly used, but somehow, someway, I finally managed to ' _ **defeat Voldemort for real this time'**_ and what happens to me now? I'm being sent to Azkaban for life because Dumbledore says that I am now a Dark Lord?"

Hermione did have the decency to look slightly ashamed before replying, "Yes Harry, I am afraid that is everything in the proverbial nutshell."

And it was.

After suffering even more abuse than usual during his fifth year (and considering this was Harry Potter that was a hell of a lot of abuse), Harry had been lured to the Ministry of Magic by a vision sent by Voldemort of Sirius Black, Harry's beloved godfather, being horribly tortured and about to be killed by Voldie.

The details of this latest "adventure" (or test, take your pick), were in Harry's mind somewhere, but right now it was all blurred. Five of his "friends" went with him despite his protests that it was something he had to do and he didn't want to risk them being captured, injured or killed. But since no one ever listened to anything Harry Potter had to say, let alone complied with his wants, needs or wishes, they went with him.

Of course it was a trap (surprise!), and they had to fight about a dozen Death Eaters. Ron managed to get badly injured by a bunch of brains attaching themselves to him (must have been the shock of intelligent entities actually thinking that knocked him out), Ginny was hurt enough to have to be protected, Neville fought valiantly by Harry's side until his nose (and his father's wand) were broken – but still the boy fought on and was faithful to Harry.

Hermione had almost been severely cursed by one of the Death Eaters, but Luna had disarmed the wizard at the last minute so his spell merely crashed into the wall doing a large amount of damage to it. Hermione never did get around to thanking Luna for saving her life but then nobody really ever thanked Luna for anything (except Harry and one time Neville did when she helped him with his potions homework).

As usual, "rescue" arrived too late, showing up only after all of the exciting fights had happened, but since they did come at last, one had to give them credit for the last minute rushing in to "save the day" (well they would still give themselves credit anyway).

Duels were fought by adult and fully-trained wizards with less success than the six kids had done, but still the duels had been fought, and some cleanup was done. There was one casualty – Sirius Black and been goofing around and was sent through the Veil of Death by a stunning spell cast by his cousin Bellatrix. This resulted in Harry getting a quick lesson in magical artifacts by Remus Lupin informing him that Sirius was dead.

Naturally, being a 15 year old kid, who had had the school year from Hell, Hades, Gehenna and any other names for eternal punishment he could think of, having just taken his OWLS (and no doubt flunked a few), not to mention the dreadful day he had had (Umbridge at her nastiest), he did what any normal teenage boy would do – he went berserk and sped off after the craziest, evilest and most murderous witch he knew about with revenge on his mind. He wouldn't think about it until much later when he had all the time in the world, but why didn't Remus follow him and try to stop him? No matter, away he had gone.

Of course with his luck – the usual lack of anything good – he caught up with her and tried to cast a Crucio curse on her (her personal favorite) and as angry as he was it just fizzled out and she got to taunt him in that annoying faux babyish voice she liked to used. The fact that he had tried to cast that curse was enough to get anyone (especially him) sent to Azkaban.

Things just went from bad to worse as the next thing he knew who shows up but Voldemort. Insults and spells flew fast (mostly from Voldie) and if that wasn't enough to completely wreck his day, FINALLY DUMBLEDORE SHOWED UP.

Now Dumbledore showing up to "save the day" should have been a good thing, right? Wrong! It was wrong because Dumbledore ALWAYS SHOWED UP when most of the excitement was done. Harry had heard rumors from sources he was not allowed to associate with but he was trying to find things out and couldn't get any useful or necessary information from any of his "handlers" so he took what he could get. It had been very interesting information.

In the last war, most of the fighting would be over when Dumbles made his appearance. On the rare instances he fought with Voldie, the Dark Lord was usually tired out as were his minions and Dumbledore had arrived full of energy and with fresh reinforcements. So Voldie hurriedly left and Dumbles was once again hailed as "winning" as the coward had fled at the very sight of the Great Albus Dumbledore – the only wizard Voldemort feared. Dumbledore had the best propaganda machine in the Magical World and was his own best publicist.

From Harry's own personal experience it was the same, except some of the times Harry was unconscious or in no physical or mental state to notice who did what to whom. Again, Dumbles was given credit for doing at least some of the saving or, at the very least, dispensing sage advice while not really telling you what really happened or the how or why or anything that would be of use for you to know. Dumbles had not been fighting with the Order members when they had finally showed up, so why was he here now? Ah, because Voldie was here and he had Harry in his grasped.

Just before the usual banter of mutual hate and you-can't-win-Tom-my-boy Cornelius Fudge, Madame Bones and a bunch of Aurors showed up. There were even a few reporters who had been tipped off that something big was going to happen and had managed to sneak in behind the Ministry people.

So there they all were. Voldemort WAS REALLY BACK, exposed to all and a few utterances of "I-told-you-so" were heard (one prominent voice sounded a lot like Amelia Bones). The odd photo flash was seen and heard before Dumbles tried to start his usual spiel. But luck was not with the old wizard as Voldie was beating him to it.

Threats were made to kill the boy, and although Voldie and a wandless Bellatrix were way outnumbered, none of the Aurors or anyone else was attempting to stop him, capture him or Bellatrix or even read him his rights. It was evident to anyone with a brain that Dumbles was doing some serious adlibbing, (perhaps because his previously prepared and rehearsed speech was useless now because there were witnesses and the scenario had changed).

But here was where Harry made his mistake. Well it was a mistake for HIM as had anyone else done it, it would have been declared heroic and praise and awards would have been given to him and everyone would have been celebrating, books would be being written, etc. But this was Harry Potter so naturally he was screwed.

Voldie had his wand pointed at the boy and now that he was distracted and Harry had recovered from the bit of torture he had endured, Harry decided to END THIS NOW! He reached into his pocket and pulled out the knife he used to cut his potion ingredients. At the same time, he stamped hard on Voldie's foot causing him to lose his concentration for a second, then Harry whirled around and grabbed at Voldie's wand causing it to snap into two pieces, kneed him in the groin and – this was where he made his mistake – used his knife to stab at Voldie's throat. He got him in the juggler and before you knew it there were massive amounts of Voldie blood everywhere and he dropped down dead on the floor.

Voila! One dead Voldie, one evil wand broken and one hero standing and surviving – yippee!

You would think that now wouldn't you as that would be the logical outcome of the situation. But remember, this is Harry Potter we are talking about and Dumbles is alive and scheming and Fudge is trying not to faint, soil himself in front of witnesses and quickly figure out how he was going to turn this into his advantage.

And let's not forget Bellatrix, who immediately launched herself at the boy and proceeding to scratch, bite, scream, hit, pummel, scream some more, threaten, slap, punch and do all sorts of nasty things to the kid. It took a while before someone went to his rescue, namely Amelia Bones who ordered some Aurors to arrest Bellatrix and stop her from killing the kid.

Harry was by this time ready to drop so he did exactly that. He collapsed into peaceful oblivion, just like he usually did after the end-of-the-year adventure, trial, test or whatever you want to call it this year.

Of course he was left lying on the floor while the adults took care of things. The photographers were his only caretakers as they were _taking care_ of immortalizing all of this by snapping as many photos of him, the dead Voldie and Minister Fudge once he noticed and flung himself in front of a camera. One idiotic reporter tried to interview the unconscious boy.

No it wasn't Rita Skeeter as she actually had a date that night (an extremely rare occurrence which must be immediately taken advantaged of) and had missed the tip off. Besides Rita would have written an article on her exclusive interview with Harry Potter (or whatever he would be called after this night), and a small thing like the truth and the kid being unconscious wouldn't have made a difference. It never had before so why start now?

Eventually Amelia Bones was able to order two Aurors to take the boy to one of the safe rooms at the Ministry and to find a healer for him. Dumbledore was too busy talking with Fudge and hadn't heard her orders otherwise he would have overridden them and port-keyed the boy back to Hogwarts so that he could deal with him.

Unfortunately before a healer could be fetched for the boy, a deal had been made between Fudge and Dumbledore. The dead-to-the-world boy was dragged from the safe room and locked into a maximum security cell. An emergency session of the Wizengamot had been called, the happenings of the night _**explained**_ in depth by Albus Dumbledore, suggestions were made for the Greater Good and final decisions were decided.

The most important thing to remember in all of this was now VOLDEMORT WAS PRONOUNCED DEAD, FINALLY DEAD, AND THIS TIME WOULD DEFINITELY STAY DEAD FOREVER AND A DAY (or so it was hoped). Then it was made an official Ministry decree to make it a fact.

Now that the worst Dark Lord was GONE FOREVER (as the Ministry kept announcing) the only problem was what to do with the NEW DARK LORD.

Apparently when a Dark Lord was defeated, it could only be done by another wizard who was dark - unless you were a True Light Lord such as Albus Dumbledore. He had defeated Gellert Grindelwald but had not become a Dark Lord as he was A TRUE LIGHT WIZARD AND STILL WAS. Of course very few people knew that Dumbles had _**only defeated him and had not killed him**_ , but why show the public know about this as they would only worry, right?

He had never used a dark spell and _**as everybody knew**_ , he had spent his life trying to ban all dark magic while redeeming those who used it. Therefore, that was the reason Dumbledore had not become a Dark Lord and remained a Light Lord – _**because his heart was pure**_.

"There is always a chance for redemption," he reiterated. "Even Voldemort (cringing was done by the Wizengamot at the use of the name) might have been able to have been saved had he not died." If the truth be told NOBODY BELIEVED THAT CROCK. Merlin himself could have come back from the dead and announced the same thing and it would not be believed. But Dumbledore said it anyway and it was with this "reasoning" which he used to condemn – YES CONDEMN – Harry Potter.

Harry Potter had killed a wizard in cold blood, in front of witnesses. He had not given the Aurors the chance to capture Voldemort so he could stand trial (yeah like they could capture Voldie). No Potter had KILLED without hesitation. Harry Potter, a 15 year old schoolboy had taken a life when there had been no need for it to be taken.

"It saddens me so as the child I considered almost a grandson, could wantonly and without a second thought COMMIT MURDER." He had gone on to mumble more about the boy's behavior, especially during the past year, and his great "disappointment" concerning some things he had done during his school years. He even seemed to be about to shed a tear or two (can you say crocodile tears?) but didn't, but he did go on and on and on and on until the members of the Wizengamot and Minister present were about to scream louder than if they had been cruciated by Bellatrix Lestrange.

"The final proof of the boy's descent into darkness is that he used an unforgivable on Bellatrix Lestrange." He paused for effect but then a voice called out "good" probably meaning "good, somebody cruciated Lestrange for a change" but it only annoyed Dumbledore. Didn't stop him from talking, but it had annoyed him.

Thus the next day the headlines of the _Daily Prophet_ proclaimed:

BOY-WHO-LIVED MURDERS LORD VOLDEMORT

USES UNFORGIVEABLE

As usual, the Fools of Magical Britain were confused. For the past year Fudge swore that He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named was dead, killed on October 31, 1981 by baby Harry Potter. He was dead and definitely not alive let alone resurrected. Potter had lied about him being back because he wanted attention and to make up an excuse for Cedric Diggory's "mysterious death" that was still mysterious (and Diggory was also still dead).

Now the Magicals of Britain were being told that okay You-Know-Who somehow had managed to "come back" but didn't want anybody to know. Why? Because he didn't want to worry them or he couldn't find any "I'm back from the dead, come to my party" cards in the shops.

But now there was no need to worry because he was back was alive but was now dead again - permanently. He hadn't remained dead, but now he was really, really dead because Harry Potter had finally did it right this time unlike the first time when he had defeated him when he was just a 15-month old baby. This time there had been a body – they had pictures! Unfortunately they couldn't show the real body as between the time he had been killed and before an autopsy could be done, the body had disintegrated. But they had the broken wand, which would be put in a theft-proof case and displayed at the Ministry.

That was the good news. Ready for the bad news?

HARRY POTTER HAD MURDERED THE POOR DARK LORD, when he could have been captured and tried for his crimes as well as interrogated as to how he had come back from the dead. The Unspeakables were outraged and furious at Potter as it was all his fault that they wouldn't get to do some vital and very interesting research (and Hermione Granger and many Ravenclaws were in complete agreement with that).

Then Dumbledore's theory had been printed, the use of the Cruciatus curse being used by him and, if there was one thing that Dumbledore tried to instill into his students was that Unforgiveables were bad as was murder. Considering one of the Unforgiveables could only result in murder was not noticed. Also not noticed, probably because it was not printed, was HOW Harry Potter had murdered the late Dark Lord.

There was no mention of the stabbing, Bellatrix's attack on Potter or anything really interesting, just that You-Know-Who had been _**murdered**_ (sniff, cry, cry). Naturally it was taken for granted that Potter had offed Voldie by AKing him as the headline said "USES UNFOREGIVEABLE" but hadn't specified which one.

So not only was Harry Potter kicked off the Gryffindor Quidditch team (which Umbridge had already done but now Dumbledore did so it would "take"), he was being expelled and sent to Azkaban – to basically teach him right from wrong since he had apparently refused to learn it at school. Oh, and the Ministry was going to fine him.

Sigh!

Magical Britain was in a state of shock. The Wizarding wireless was lit up with floo calls being broadcasted, the news media was going crazy, the pubs were filled with impromptu celebrations, there were many drunken debates (and fights) and gossip abounded.

The foreign press had always thought that British wizards were crazy but all of this confirmed it and made it official.

And if this wasn't the worst of the worst, when Harry Potter recovered from his exhaustion, instead of seeing the Hogwarts Infirmary, Madame Pomfrey and eventually Dumbledore, there sat Hermione Granger reading a book (of course) and waiting for him to wake up.

For some reason Hermione had wanted to say goodbye to her first, best and, as it would shortly be revealed, her only real friend. Neville Longbottom and Luna Lovegood would have come if they had been allowed (Dumbledore wouldn't hear of it), but Neville was trying to convince his grandmother to help Harry while Luna and her father were mobilizing the _Quibbler_ in Harry's defense.

None of the Weasleys – especially Ron – had wanted anything to do with the new dark lord and as usual, Ron would be very vocal about the whole situation and holding court in the Gryffindor common room telling the "real story" concerning the incident. He would do this just as soon as he recovered from the overdose of the exposure to intelligence due to the brains which had "got him." As he was totally unfamiliar with real intelligence the brains caused him great pain and once he was healed from the attack of smartness, he would go back to being his old, lazy, tactless, senseless self and would do everything in his power to keep it that way.

Because he had been too busy controlling things, Dumbledore had graciously allowed Hermione Granger to be the one who would inform Harry that he was going to Azkaban for life because of his very bad and disappointing behavior. Of course, she had to promise to tell Harry just how badly he had disappointed the Headmaster, had let down and shamed his fellow Gryffindors, how going to Azkaban was for his own good and a bunch of other ridiculous reasons.

Although Dumbledore knew she had an excellent memory, he had given her a list of reasons along with his clear, informative and wise explanations as "You know how Harry is my girl. He will need it all carefully explained to him since he will argue and try to wiggle out of his wrongdoings. However, I have every confidence that you will be the one to do it. I would but, I confess I am so greatly disappointed in him that I fear I might lose my temper."

Despite him being unconscious, an Auror had immobilized the Boy-Who-Killed, and as if he didn't already have enough problems, he was now a virtual prisoner and forced to listen to Hermione Granger informing him of not only his many faults and sins as listed by Dumbledore, but to also hear her personal opinion and chastisement of _his treatment of Dumbledore_.

"Despite all of the things you have done tonight, I believe the very worse has been how totally you have disappointed Professor Dumbledore," Hermione told him. "He has been your mentor – almost like a grandfather to you – has cared for you, instructed you, seen to your safety after the death of your parents, has served as a shining example as how a true Gryffindor and a wizard should act, has guided you…"

"Yeah, placed me with the Dursleys, kept me on a tight leash, isolated me from just about everybody except a chosen few which he chose, exposed me to the Philosopher's Stone, the basilisk, didn't tell me about Sirius being my godfather or try to get him a trial when found that he was innocent, let me be shanghaied into the Tournament without…."

"HARRY JAMES POTTER, DON'T YOU DARE TRY TO CHANGE THE SUBJECT AND WEASEL OUT OF YOUR SINS BY TRYING TO GET MY SYMPATHY BY CITING A FEW INCIDENTS THAT HAVE HAPPENED OVER THE YEARS," an extremely angry Hermione yelled. She then took a deep breath before continuing.

"Professor Dumbledore ALWAYS had everything under control and these all were mere tests for you to prove yourself and you always had Ron and me to help you. At least once a week either or both Ron and I had a private meeting with the Headmaster to report on your progress and get instructions on how better to help you, lead you and keep you on the correct path."

"YOU WERE BOTH SPYING ON ME?"

"Of course, not," she cried indignantly. "We were HELPING the Headmaster HELP YOU."

A very angry Harry then said sweetly, albeit through gritted teeth, "Well that explains why Ron was made a Prefect, _**why you helped him to**_ CHEAT HIS WAY ONTO THE QUIDDITCH TEAM – no doubt on orders by the Headmaster and…"

"HARRY JAMES POTTER HOW DARE YOU…."

"WITH NO DOUBT THE PROMISE HE'D BE QUIDDITCH CAPTAIN AND THEN HEAD BOY TO YOUR HEAD GIRL."

That shocked Hermione speechless – for a second. "How did you find out? Were you using dark magic before this? Oh Harry, you are irredeemable like the Headmaster says. Now don't you see why you deserve to go to Azkaban and repent?"

"That is the biggest crock of dragon dung I have ever heard, Granger," stated Amelia Bones. Hermione had been so busy condemning Harry she had not heard the Head of the DMLE and the two Aurors accompanying her enter the room.

"Call it whatever you like, rationalize it ad infinitum but you and Ron Weasley were SPYING and TATTLING on Harry Potter for personal gain and everybody knew it. My niece has been telling me that for years as have other students been telling their parents. YOU DISGUST ME YOU NASTY, OPPORTUNISTIC BITCH. Auror Dawlish, remove her from this room and the Ministry."

"How dare you," screamed a thoroughly confused, but insulted Hermione Granger. "I'm telling the Headmaster and he will…"

"You are everything she just said and more, you spying, little bint," said Auror Dawlish as he roughly grabbed the indignant girl and dragged her out of the room despite her loud and multiple protests.

When the door had closed behind them, Amelia Bones looked at Harry Potter and said, "Don't thank me as she was irritating me beyond endurance and I have some bad news for you Mr. Potter. We three heard the last minute or so of your conversations and unfortunately, despite all you have done and all you have been put through, you're screwed."

Harry stared at the witch until he just closed his eyes and sighed heavily.

The witch sorrowfully continued saying, "Although anybody with a brain and/or a conscious know, or at least should, know better, Dumbledore has convinced them that yes you are a murderer – even though any Auror would have gladly killed You-Know-Who if given the chance and had the opportunity, ability or the luck. He has also proclaimed you as the successor to You-Know-Who and so as to prevent your reign of terror from happening, he is nipping it the bud and you will be going to Azkaban for the rest of your life."

There was nothing Harry could say in answer to that, but she still continued.

"I am sorry, truly sorry but there is nothing I or anyone else can do for you at the moment. Dumbledore has made a deal with Fudge who will do anything to stay in office as well as some of the more prominent Death Eaters, like Lucius Malfoy, who have substantial money, power, influence and are willing to 'join forces' with Dumbledore. This is all for the 'Greater Good' which Dumbledore likes to constantly refer to."

"I, for one, and the two Aurors who accompanied me, believe this is a monumental miscarriage of justice as do several people in the Wizengamot and a few of your 'real friends' and acquaintances. However, other than to petition for your release or at the very least, for you to have an official public trial, there is nothing we can do at the moment. Dumbledore has been moving too fast and apparently had contingency plans made for such an occurrence. I can promise you nothing now, if ever, other than to have Auror Mitchell here, who is a healer, give you some medical treatment. Then, another group will be here – SOON – to drag you off the Azkaban."

Auror/Healer Mitchell had begun to treat Harry as soon as Hermione had been dragged out. It was fortunate that he did as now the door was thrust opened and half a dozen Aurors stomped in followed by Minister Fudge and a few members of his entourage. There were even a few reporters with their photographers to record the historic moment of Fudge pronouncing sentence on the Dark Boy-Who-Killed-And-Would-Not-Be-Given-The-Opportunity-To-Kill-Again.

'How the hell do they come up with these titles?' Harry wondered.

Mercifully for Harry, Mitchell had managed to heal most of his injuries but had been unable to administer any potions for the trauma and shock the boy had endured. Three of the Aurors roughly pulled Harry up, conjured some unnecessary very heavy chains and magical suppressants on the poor kid, Fudge continued his ranting, photographs were taken and in what he would remember only as a haze, Harry Potter was taken off to Azkaban.

Everything belongs to JKRowling except the mad plots and the occasional character I have added. I make no money on this and just write to express my warped sense of imagination.

Chapter 2 – Home-Sour-Home

Six months later Harry James Potter was still in Azkaban. Not that he could expect anything else, as the only escape he was told on a daily basis would be his well-deserved death. The only good thing he experienced was that he was only seen by the Dementors on a once a week basis.

This was not due to any form of mercy on the part of those in charge only that for some reason, most of the Dementors had left Azkaban and had not returned. The Ministry was at a loss to explain why this had happened but it had and they had no idea where the Dementors had gone. There were only six Dementors left and these six could not or would not tell the Ministry where their brethren had gone despite the constant demands from Fudge.

Dumbledore had hypostatized that since Dementors were very dark creatures, once Voldemort had finally died, the "Dark Side" had suffered such a loss that most of the Dementors had simply faded away because the "Light Side" had won and now reigned supreme.

As Amelia Bones had once told Harry Potter 'Although anybody with a brain and/or a conscious do, or at least should know better' that conjecture was probably 'The biggest crock of dragon dung I have ever heard' – which had been another thing Amelia Bones had said. For some reason, Harry had been able to recall everything said to him in the time after he regained consciousness and before he was dragged off to his undeserved fate, even Fudge's rants and the questions thrown at him by the reporters.

However, nothing really mattered except that the public not find out that nearly 200 Dementors were unaccounted for and loose and definitely not under Ministry control.

In any event, Harry was grateful that he only saw a Dementor or two once a week. They didn't bother him as much as they had during his third year. Maybe be had become used to them. Of course that was a more ridiculous and unlikely idea than the one given by Dumbledore to the Ministry.

Harry had been given Sirius' old cell, which hadn't been cleaned since Sirius' escape. He and Sirius had had few conversations and most of those had consisted of tales about James, the Marauders' hilarious pranks, girls, snogging, shagging and why wasn't Harry doing any of that and why wasn't he more like James. One thing he had told Harry was the only reason he had stayed as sane as he had (and that definition of sane was debatable) was that (1) he was an animagus; and (2) he knew he was innocent and Dementors don't like to feed on innocence.

Harry wasn't an animagus but he was innocent. As usual, Sirius' promise to send him books and/or the Marauders' notes on the subject of animagus transformation had been an empty one. Harry had tried to order a book from Flourish and Blotts but was told they were under strict regulations and he had to have written permission from his Head of House, the Headmaster and his Transfiguration teacher.

Both McGonagall and Dumbledore had refused him permission, McGonagall saying he was too young, it was too dangerous and she would only consider it under her own strict supervision starting in Harry's seventh year. As usual Dumbledore just said no and gave no reason.

Maybe his innocence was saving him or the Dementors were just overworked, or rather overfed. No matter, he wasn't in too much distress and in the past three months had even formed a relationship of sorts with them. He had given them names. There was Sam, Cissy, Nigel, Julie, Winston and Bubbles (don't ask). Of course he didn't know if they were male or female, he just assigned the name. They never "talked" with him they merely floated above him and seemed to listen while he rambled on.

Once a day a scraggly Auror came to deliver his food and water ration. It was shoved through the cat flap-like door on the bottom of his cell and while it was being delivered the Auror repeated the daily mantra that "the only escape you have will be your well-deserved death." Harry considered this the "grace before meals" Azkaban-style. It was strange though that only Harry received this benediction as the other prisoners were told nothing.

He had "neighbors" consisting of a re-jailed Bellatrix Lestrange and her brother-in-law Rabastan. Apparently Rudolphus had picked up a mystery ailment before Voldie's latest death and had quickly died. Poor Bella was now a widow. Now doubt Rudolphus was in Hell but it was a Bella-less hell so it had probably been worth the trip. There were two other Death Eaters near enough to be heard screaming or weeping loudly in the night, but they left Harry alone and Rabastan didn't say much.

Bella, however, was not to be quieted. She spent her time periodically screaming or just plain yelling at Harry about killing her Dark Lord but reminding him that once again her Lord wasn't really dead and he would be back again to "Redeem the faithful, punish the traitors, kill the Mudbloods, Half-bloods, Blood Traitors and most especially Harry Potter."

"This time you son-of-a-Mudblood whore, you will know torture – torture so unimaginable as it cannot be mentioned without those hearing it having their very blood chilled. You will not be given the mercy of a quick death. No, your death will take years and years and your suffering will be as food and drink – nectar and ambrosia – to my ears and that of my Lord."

It was the same day after day and was becoming boring until one day about two months into his sentence Harry asked her to "imagine" some of the tortures and tell him so he could begin "shivering in his boots" in anticipation and worry."

Bellatrix proved to be very imaginative, not to mention instructive. In fact, Harry learned quite a lot from the insane witch with regard to dark spells. He even asked how they were performed and she told him in great detail. On occasion she stuck out her hand and demonstrated the proper wand movement. She also thought up some new ones but since she had never taken Arithmancy, she couldn't begin to craft their creation. She assured him her Master would be able to and she would watch and laugh at Harry's pain.

Harry learned more about magic from her in the past few months than he had at Hogwarts as she told him about other forms of magic. She also liked to hear the sound of her own voice. Now he too wished he had taken Arithmancy or Runes or anything other than Divination. Not that there was a plethora of choices, but Divination had been a total waste. Ron had said it would be an easy "O" but Harry was sure he had managed to fail it.

Damn Ron Weasley! Damn Ron and ALL the Weasleys. Ron had kept him ignorant, had actually sabotaged and prevented him from learning and making friends, especially from other houses. He had been spying on him and telling Dumbledore. No doubt all of the Weasleys had been in on "IT" and he had been so grateful for a family, for the warmth of human contact and kindness, he had fallen for it. But then he had probably been set up and molded into the Weasley web due to Dumbledore's manipulations.

Well at least the food had been good and he received the occasional badly knitted jumper for Christmas. The food sent to him over the summer had been a true god sent, but there could have been more of it, something other than sweets most of the time as well as being sent more often. Hell he would have even paid Mrs. Weasley to send him a continuous supply of food, but now it seemed she had only been sending him the occasion "charity food" to make him more dependent and grateful.

Better yet, there could have been no Dursleys involved anymore. But no, Dumbledore had forced him to return to those cruel people and never really gave him a reason.

In fact, Dumbledore had never told him why he had the power of condemning him to that hell as he was only, after all, the Headmaster of his school. Even Sirius had mentioned that in THEIR WILL (the one he had never seen or even heard about) James and Lily had not made Dumbledore any sort of guardian over Harry.

Harry had started asking more concerning what arrangements had been made by his parents in case Sirius was also dead or incapacitated, but Sirius had quickly changed the subject and asked about all the girls Harry "should be" snogging – and by this time even shagging. That had shut Harry up and Sirius never allowed himself to be put into a situation where Harry could again ask that important question.

All of that was now water under the bridge. Harry already had no hope – except for death – and he had the feeling that he was not going to be allowed that any time soon.

All prisoners were fed a bowl of assorted slop once a day. A jug of water and a clay cup was also on the tray and this was to last the prisoner all day. It was usually some kind of stew, porridge or soup. If it was soup, you usually received a hunk of stale bread, although you got some extra stale bread if it was a holiday like Halloween (or Samhain as the other prisoners called it), or Christmas. After all, it was not like they were working, could exercise or do anything in their small, dismal cells to burn off calories. One didn't want a fat prisoner after all.

Harry, however, always received a small vial of some sort of potion but the others never did. Since it was nourishment, he always drank it hoping, in the back of his mind, that it would kill him. It didn't and seemed to keep him fairly healthy.

Through idle conversation he had found out that Rabastan had been very good in potions. One day he described the potion and asked Rabastan if he could identify it. Harry had to tell him the color, the smell and was asked if he could identify any possible ingredient. He could, and Rabastan opined it was a nutrient potion.

"Sounds like someone doesn't want you to die anytime soon. The swill we get does have some "extras" in it to keep us alive, so the Ministry can't be accused with neglecting our health. It is meant to taste like dragon dung for our further punishment, but it is sustaining. If the Dementors don't get to you and you continue to eat, you will live. That Black and we Lestranges and some of the others survived for over 13-15 years is proof. Rumor has it that the longest a prisoner has lasted here was 27 years but he died because he had finally stopped eating and was throwing his food down the piss hole."

"Well that's interesting to know," Harry replied. "Why do you think I am getting the extra supplement? Is it because of my age?"

Rabastan thought before replying, "No because in the early fifties there was a third year Hogwarts student thrown in here because he was caught poisoning several of his dorm mates. Rumor has it, he was being unmercifully bullied by the upper years and naturally none of the teachers would help him. Now I won't swear on my life and magic, but I believe he was a Muggleborn and was in Gryffindor. Dumbledore had just become Headmaster and for some reason wouldn't help the kid out, despite the kid being in the Infirmary more often than you were, and it got so bad the kid just snapped, brewed a simple but untraceable potion and probably would have gotten away with it if he hadn't been given Veritaserum."

"They gave a 13-14 year old kid Veritaserum? I thought that was illegal."

"It is," grinned Rabastan, "But a little thing like it being legal or illegal has NEVER stopped Dumbledore from doing what he wants to especially once he became Headmaster. Besides some of the bullies the kid offed were from good families and the families wanted answers and revenge."

The rest of the day Rabastan spent telling Harry some of the things Dumbledore had done when he was at school. Harry was shocked, but not surprised to hear Rabastan telling him some of the "hilarious pranks" which the Marauders had gotten away with. The most distressing ones usually involved Snape.

Now Harry had seen the incident where Snape had called his mother a Mudblood and had been ashamed that it was caused by his father's and Sirius' bullying, but the things which Rabastan was telling him now were….disturbing.

Should he believe Rabastan Lestrange, a known Death Eater? If Ron was here (and he wasn't) he would quickly point out that a Death Eater would definitely be several things: a Slytherin, a murderer, a torturer, a bad guy, an evil guy (unless the DE was a female), a definite liar and not in the least trustworthy. But then again, how trustworthy had Ron, a "true" Gryffindor, ever been?

So Harry had given Rabastan the benefit of the doubt and asked more questions and received even more interesting information. The only thing which had stopped Rabastan from talking had been due to the fact that it was getting late and he had been talking all day and his water ration had run out. There was always tomorrow and since he had nothing planned other than living another day, Rabastan promised to resume his talk after their rations were brought.

This gave Harry time to think up more questions. There were so many things about the Wizarding World he didn't know and had been kept from finding out about by the Weasleys, McGonagall, Hermione and most importantly, Dumbledore.

Therefore the first question Harry asked Rabastan after their daily rations had been received, eaten and some of the much needed water drunk was "Why are you two here? I mean, Lucius Malfoy and others – even Crabbe and Goyle, Srs. – are still free. Dumbledore KNOWS they are active Death Eaters and have always been so, yet they are free."

"Well Lucius," Rabastan spat out the name, "Has always been a slippery bastard and has a lot of money and influence. So do the others, although Crabbe and Goyle aren't as well flushed but are faithful lackeys of Lucius and probably rode out on his coattails like they did the last time."

"Yes, but don't the Lestranges have money? I mean Bella's crazy but you and your late brother must have some or at least more than Crabbe and Goyle AND you are Malfoy's in-laws."

Rabastan laughed at this. "Oh yes, we have money and Cissy Malfoy is Bella's sister, however, the last time we were sent here was because dear Bella dragged us off to find the Dark Lord, who had 'disappeared' as Bella refused to believe that he was dead. Just before he left to 'finish off the Potters' he gave all his followers the direct order to _not follow him and do nothing until he returned_. It was not a wise thing to disobey the Dark Lord's orders, _but Bella just had to look for him_.

"Shut up," screamed Bella from her cell. "You shouldn't be telling this son-of-a-Mudblood…."

"Shut up you old hag," Harry snapped back. "Rabastan is kindly telling me a history of VOLDEMORT in a calm, rational and informative manner – unlike some people. Who knows, Rabastan just might convince me to join up the next time your lord resurrects – and he'll need my blood to do it like the last time."

That shut Bellatrix up fast. She had tortured the story of her lord's resurrection out of Pettigrew and the little bit of sanity she had left told her Potter might again be needed to bring back her Lord.

"Now where was I before such a rude interruption," Rabastan said. "Ah – why some of us are still here while Lucius runs free and don't we have money. Well I started telling you about the Longbottoms. Bella did most of the torturing because she wanted to, but she did allow Rudolphus to help a bit. I was being held in reserve if she needed to take a break and Barty was the lookout. None of us really wanted to be there except Bella. Anyway Barty warned us that Aurors were arriving and he fled while we were caught. Barty, as you know, was betrayed by Karkaroff to save his own skin. So the four of us ended up here and except for Barty remained here until the Dark Lord rescued us."

"Now I truly believe that had he wanted to, Lucius could have made another deal with those who he originally convinced that he was under the Imperious as he did for all of the others. As I said before I was so rudely interrupted, Crabbe, Goyle, Crawford – he died from dragon pox in 1987 – and one or two others were helped out by Lucius financially. Rudolphus ALWAYS had the opinion that the reason that _**he and I were denied the use of the Imperius defense**_ was because Lucius arranged it."

"You see Harry, Rudolphus and I were the last of the Lestranges. We had two cousins but one died young in a Quidditch accident and the other was a Squibb and cast out. My fiancée and I were to be married during the Yule celebrations in 1981 but…well you happened. She married somebody else after my incarceration. Come to think of it, she married Crawford and she must have died of the pox when he did because I heard from a guard that she had died. Oh well."

"Now with both Rudolphus and me in Azkaban with life sentences, we were unable to produce heirs. Bella had a bad miscarriage and hadn't conceived again before we were sent here. Thus, according to the Pureblood laws of inheritance to which our families adhere to as well as the _marriage contract arranged by the House of Black_ , when we Lestranges died without heirs of our body, our family fortune and heirlooms would be left to any spouse we had, or in this case, to Bellatrix, as the Blacks had legal, acceptable Pureblood heirs or an heir in this case."

"Let me guess," interrupted Harry. "Draco Malfoy will inherit the title and money after both you and Bella die."

"Exactly."

"You don't know that for certain," Bella snarled.

"Well who else would it be considering Rudolphus is dead, you never had or even will have a child and I am stuck here with you?"

"Potter."

"WHAT?" said both Harry and Rabastan at the same time.

"Harry James Potter will be my heir as he is now the Lord Black." She smiled smugly knowing that they would have to ask – no beg her to impart this news to them.

Unfortunately for her, neither wizard seemed to be asking why. They were both doing it on purpose just to annoy her knowing that she couldn't resist telling them. So after about a minute of silence, she broke down and told them as this was just too good to keep to oneself.

"As you know I am a member of the House of Black. One of my great aunts was Dorea Black who married Charlus Potter and whose son was James Potter, Harry's father. Sirius was my first cousin and the presumed heir of his father Orion Black, who was the Lord Black and Head of the Family. Therefore, Sirius was a relative of Dorea Black Potter and when he proved to be an unrepentant shame to the Family, she took him in and gave him shelter and his uncle by marriage, her husband Charlus granted him the protection of House Potter."

"Sirius was the eldest son, and it was only Walburga, his mother and also my aunt, who disowned him, _**his father did not**_. She told everyone he was disowned but _he was only disowned by her, as his mother and it was never officially done, just verbally bandied about_."

"Just so you know Potter, _only the current Lord Black can officially disown a family member_ and Uncle Orion never disowned Sirius. Oh he took away his right as heir, which he then bestowed on Sirius' younger brother Regulus, but he never _**disowned**_ him. If something happened to Regulus or Regulus never sired or chose and named an _official heir_ , _then Sirius or his heir_ , would be in line to inherit the Lordship."

"That is what happened. Regulus died and was _**only**_ the heir. He never named or sired an heir and didn't even have a Will. Believe me, Lucius investigated this thoroughly. Orion was still alive when Regulus _died_. Therefore, according to the Will Orion had made and never changed – and it was an ironclad Will at that – Sirius would be the heir since Regulus died childless. Orion died after we lost Reggie and about two years after Sirius ended up here."

Besides few people knew that Arcturus, Orion's father, was still alive and he was Lord Black. He didn't die until 1991 and by the terms of his Will, Draco Malfoy will never inherit the Black Lordship because Arcturus hates Lucius Malfoy, never approved of Narcissa marrying him and he left the Lordship to Sirius' heir, namely you."

"But I wasn't Sirius' heir."

"Yes you were you idiot boy – didn't that mangy mutt or anybody else tell you?"

"Of course not, why would anybody ever tell me anything?"

Bellatrix sighed heavily. "Perhaps I should give you another lesson. In the Magical World, especially in Pureblood circles, when someone agrees to be a godparent they assume several duties. One of which is that they swear on their life and magic to see to the care, nurturing, education and protection of the child as if that child was sired by their loins or birthed from their womb."

"Sirius was acknowledged by one and all as your godfather and it was printed in the _Daily Prophet_ as such things are legally obliged to be. Therefore you became his acknowledged heir and would stay _his heir_ until such time as he produced one of his own or blood adopted a child."

"However, I happen to know for a fact that he went one better. He officially and legally went through THE ancient ceremony of "Child of the Heart" wherein using his acknowledged position of godfather he made you his official heir. This means that he blood adopted you making you irrevocably his heir over and above any heir sired by his loins and thus…"

"WAIT A MINUTE" Harry yelled. "If Sirius took this godfather oath at my birth, and he did it publicly and in front of witnesses, and it meant that he had to swear on his life and magic to care, nurture, educate and _protect me,_ then how could he be accused of telling Voldie where I was as Voldie was…."

"STOP TAKING OUR LORD'S NAME IN VAIN!"

"Yeah, yeah" said Harry before continuing. "What I am asking is if he had to swear on his life and magic and _**people knew about it**_ , how could he be accused of betraying my parents and me to VOLDIE?"

"He couldn't" added Rabastan. "People knew he couldn't cause harm to you without risking his life and magic. Dumbledore definitely knew this and _I just happen to know, thanks to Wormtail blabbing away when he was drunk, that Dumbledore cast the Fidelius charm himself and changed it to Wormtail instead of Sirius._ "

"What?" asked the cold voice of Harry Potter.

"Dumbledore knew," Bella said smilingly. "All the Death Eaters knew also as Wormie bragged about the casting ceremony. And before you interrupt me again, Dumbledore also knew that Wormie was a Death Eater. He set your parents up to die and thus you."

Due to the placement of the small openings which served as the only door openings other than the cat flap, while Harry could see Bella's hand/arm movements when she was instructing him, none of them could see the other's faces, so Harry very slowly asked, "Rabastan, is Bella just being her usual bitchy, aggravating self or is she telling the truth?"

"Bella is always her usual bitchy, aggravating self but yes, she is telling the truth. Rudolphus and I spent hours in our mutual cells wondering if Sirius had been obliviated of the fact or was just a complete and utter fool. Our conclusion was he was all of it them."

"Oooohhh is ickle bitty Potter feeling bad now….."

"DON'T BELLA" ordered her brother-in-law. "NOT NOW. Leave him be."

"But why Rusty? Why should…"

"Other than doing it for human kindness dear sister in the law, do it for the fact that despite him not knowing, despite the fact you want to hurt yet another fairly innocent kid, do it because HE IS THE LORD BLACK."

He stared into the small passageway in front of his cell since he couldn't glare at the witch. It worked anyway. There was silence in the small group of cells for the rest of the day.

But tomorrow is always another day and as soon as it felt like "morning" Harry called over to Rabastan.

"Rusty, she called you Rusty yesterday. Would you care to explain?"

"Rabastan could be too long to keep saying. Only Rudolphus called me that and not since we went to Hogwarts. She only calls me that when she wants to annoy me more than usual. How are you doing today?"

"How does anybody DO in Azkaban? But I am full of more questions."

"Hmm, let me clear my schedule…done. Okay, ask away."

"So Sirius might have made out a Will when I was a baby?"

"He was a Pureblood and there was a war going on, so yes, he made out a Will. Also, he was an Auror and all Aurors were obliged to have a Will."

"Was there a possibility he made out a new Will once he got out of this place?"

"Of course there was always that possibility, but since he went through the "Child of the Heart" ceremony, you were still his heir. He was also the probable heir of Arcturus, even if he never put the House Ring on. To answer your next probable question, even if you haven't put on the House Ring, I bet a week's worth of swill rations that you are the Lord Black."

"Is there any way that Dumbledore could change it?"

"No. Sirius did everything legal and it would have been spelled and recorded in the Black Family archives, registered at the Ministry and at Gringotts. You can bribe the Ministry, records can be 'lost' or 'their existence denied' but once you pay the fee to the Goblins, they swear on their honor and file the record."

"Then why wasn't I on the Black Family Tapestry? I saw the tapestry and my name wasn't there."

"Aunt Walburga burnt out names" Bella added. "She also could have placed a stop on the tapestry after Draco's birth. You are a few months younger than him and since she knew your parents would definitely make Sirius the godfather and knowing that he would probably be making you his heir, she didn't want a record of it. Thus, she could place a stop under Sirius' burnt out name. No doubt if Narcissa had had another child, a name would appear under her lineage. Auntie did things like that all of the time. She would have done a lot more but Uncle Orion managed to stop her from doing some truly wicked things – things that even I wouldn't do."

"Then why wasn't she a Death Eater?"

"For one thing, our Lord rarely marked a witch with his blessed brand. Only I and about six others were deemed worthy enough to be marked. The others, such as my sister Cissy, were members but not marked. Their duty was to support their wizards, run a proper Pureblood home, act as spies, raise money and provide new recruits by birthing as many noble Purebloods as possible."

"Besides my dear Aunt Walburga wasn't all that powerful and if the truth be known neither is Narcissa. Narcissa just studied hard and practiced a lot on certain things that became 'her specialties' so I doubt even Lucius has noticed."

There was silence for a few moments before Harry asked another question.

"I have asked myself many questions since I've been here and other than the questions on magic and Magical society which you have answered for me, there are other questions I have no real answers to. I can't explain why Dumbledore placed me with the Dursleys as he never gave me a reason, just orders and he saw to my incarceration at that hellhole and even placed guards on me. There was never any help or protection provided to me to save me from the abuse of my relatives. No the guards were just to keep me there, apparently for me to suffer and so he could keep tabs on me until he deigned to retrieve me."

"I never knew why Sirius acted the way he did, especially since it was evident that he had been abandoned by Dumbledore, nor why Remus never contacted me while I was growing up. I have no explanation why none of my teachers noticed anything or helped me in any way. McGonagall certainly never did as my Head of House. Snape had free reign to torture me and I don't want to even think about the Tournament."

"I did like, yet now hate the Weasleys. I can guess Ron's reasons for betraying me, the Twins reasons for befriending me – they needed money and knew someday they could get some from me, and they did. Mr. Weasley still seems nice, I don't know Bill or Charlie well enough and Percy has always been a git. Ginny is a shameless fan girl who has spent the past year trying to get my attention by acting, dressing and playing a sexy girl – no make that a slut. Even I am not that naïve to think that she wasn't trying to seduce me, not for me as Harry but as the Boy-Who-Lived. But seriously, who in their right mind would even want to date a girl with six older, very protective and, considering the Twins, vicious brothers and a mother like Molly Weasley?"

"I would like to think that Mrs. Weasley liked me a little bit, but she was probably using me. She hardly knew me, probably wasn't in my actual presence more than a total of six weeks, never wrote me and yet she goes around constantly telling me and everybody that she considers me her seventh son and liked to act like she was really my mother. The things she said and did to Sirius while at Grimmauld Place considering that it was his house and he was my godfather, were dreadful and very disrespectful since he was a Lord. But then, he let her do it and appeared to just meekly accept it."

"Hermione is the only person I have the answers for. She is a lonely, socially inept girl and probably always will be. She is intelligent, widely read and would prefer to just sit and read all day long. If she was stranded on a deserted island with nothing to eat except fruit and the occasional fish she caught and drink nothing but water and coconut milk, just as long as there was a huge library with thousands and thousands of books, she would be content and die happy of old age without ever again seeing another human being."

"However, Hermione is exactly what everybody calls her. She is bossy, she is a know-it-all, she is extremely opinionated, a teacher's pet, a brown noser and demands to be number one. She doesn't like competition. If anyone gets a higher mark than she, they become her enemy and she wouldn't rest until she was number one again. Whereas Ron wanted me to be stupid and lazy just like him and went out of his way to keep me that way, Hermione wanted me to study but not to do better than her. It was a vicious cycle, almost as bad as when I couldn't do better than my extremely lazy and hopelessly stupid cousin without being severely punished."

"Hermione was definitely Ravenclaw material and said that although Ravenclaw would be okay, she'd rather be sorted into Gryffindor as 'That was Dumbledore's house so therefore it must be the best.' You could see her arguing with the Hat until it probably went crazy and put her in Gryffindor just to shut her up."

"The Hat just could have sorted her where it wanted her to be and that would have been final," Rabastan added.

"Actually I think that was where Dumbledore wanted her to be and although they say you can't influence the Hat, I begged it not to put me in Slytherin."

"HA! As if you would ever be in Slytherin" Bella snorted.

"I'll have you know the Hat wanted to put me there but between Hagrid and Ron trashing the House, telling me that only the evil went there and then your charming nephew Draco acting like the pricky ponce that he is and totally alienating me with his usual Malfoyness, I begged to go to Gryffindor."

Rabastan had snickered hearing "Malfoyness" whereas Bella merely huffed and refused to believe the likes of Harry Potter would ever be considered for Slytherin. Before a debate (or fight) could break out, Harry continued with his synopsis of Hermione.

"Hermione's biggest fault is that she is a slave to authority. She worships Dumbledore and no doubt any attention he gave her, any 'mission' assigned to her, well she'd jump at the chance. She'd believe anything he told her, even if she didn't want to hear or believe. In fact, if he told her that her own parents were not really dentists but back alley abortionists who specialized in late third trimester abortions, while selling hardcore illegal drugs out the back door of their office, while Mrs. Granger ran a bordello consisting of under-aged girls high-jacked from say…Eastern Europe and sold into sexual slavery, while Mr. Granger doubled as a hitman (whew), she would probably believe him."

"Nobody could be that naïve," Bella said.

"Sorry, but if an authority figure, especially if it were Dumbledore, told Hermione that and thus her parents had been caught and thrown in jail forever and Dumbledore heartily approved, Hermione would be shocked, embarrassed, ashamed but agree with him that it was only right, proper and just and never once defend her own parents."

"Stupid Mudblood," Bella murmured.

"I agree totally with your assessment," said Harry. "My only consolation is now that I am in Azkaban for life, what use will Dumbledore have for her? Will she still be made Head Girl or just cast aside as, after all, she is a Muggleborn?"

"He'll probably use her as a spy in Gryffindor," Rabastan added. "Dumbles is noted for his use of tattletales. Rumor had it he tried to get your mother to be the Hermione of her age, but even after she and Snape ended their friendship, she refused to be a snitch as well as refusing to go out with your….father. It was a miracle that she was made Head Girl and it was probably only the fact that she was the best choice for the position that she received the honor."

"The Slytherin in me" Harry said extra loud for Bella's benefit, "hopes that she will revert back to her previous position before she became my friend. Nobody really likes her in the House and Neville once told me that if it wasn't for the fact that she was my friend, she would still be an outcast. She does offer to help people like Neville with his homework but Neville is the only one – well besides me at times – that will actually do the work and not expect to copy everything like Ron does."

"From what I heard about Weasley, he nags her until she gives in."

"Yes, that's true but there have been times he has just plain 'borrowed' her work behind her back and copied it word-for-word. I was never that bad as at least I tried to learn. What always surprised me was that only Snape called him on it."

Harry asked a few more questions about life at Hogwarts in 'Rabastan's day' since it was around the time his parents attended. Rabastan told him about the relationship between Lily Evans and Snape and Harry was shocked to learn they had grown up together.

Bellatrix had interrupted to add that "Snape actually DARED to ask – no beg – our Lord to spare the Mudblood. 'Kill James Potter and his spawn but spare the Mudblood and give her to me for a plaything' he begged."

"He was trying to save her life, Bella" Rabastan replied. "The entire school – except for Evans – knew Snape _loved her_. Her breaking up their friendship and Sirius arranging to trap Snape in a room with Lupin during a full moon were the real reasons Snape joined the Death Eaters."

"WHAT!"

With a sigh Rabastan spent the rest of the day telling Harry Potter many things which he did not know, especially the "incident" in Snape's sixth year and Dumbledore's dreadful and callous treatment of Snape when he reported what had happened.

"Wormtail bragged that it was all a set up to scare the hell out of Snape – the ultimate prank. James would rush in at the last minute and 'save' Snape and thus declared that Snape owed him a life debt. Dumbledore used this to finally lead Snape to join up with the intention of someday forcing him to become a spy for him."

Bella interrupted adding that "Wormie also hinted that James would finally 'get' the Mudblood Evans – his words not mine this time – before they graduated as once Snapie joined up she would never take him back."

Six months ago if ANYONE had tried to tell Harry Potter any of the things which he had learned about these past months, he would never have believed them – even if it had been Sirius or Lupin. But the ultimate betrayal by Dumbledore after he had "served his purpose" had taught him a severe lesson and putting together the things he had been told the last few weeks….well it was enough to make him join up with Voldie if he ever came back.

"Hey, do you know how Voldie came back? I mean he was in a wraith-like form, but according to Dumbdorkdickprick, the killing curse he hit with me bounced off me and rebounded onto him and it turned him into dust."

Since Voldemort was Bella's favorite topic she immediately started praising his knowledge, power and magic but could give no substantive answer as none of his followers had been privileged to his plans. Even Wormtail didn't know all the specifics and he just followed Voldie's orders without knowing why.

The next week saw a sort of friendship develop between the up-to-now mortal enemies. If nothing else, it served to pass the time and relieve the boredom. Rabastan told Harry more about the Marauders and Snape as well as some of the manipulations Dumbledore had done since he became Headmaster.

Since he had nothing better to do, Harry told Bella and Rabastan about his childhood, his time at Hogwarts and all the things Dumbledore had forced him to do. They had been incensed at how Dumbledore had ruled Harry's life especially since he had no right to do so. For the first time in his life Harry found out about his true status in the Wizarding World as the heir to an Ancient and Noble House. The fact that he was the last heir and orphaned so young and under such mysterious circumstances just reeked of illegal manipulations.

"The fact that you were the _last heir and orphaned_ should have set off some serious alarms," Rabastan informed him. "Even discounting your "national hero status" there had to be a Will naming your guardians under normal circumstances but since there was a war on and your father held a high risk job, not to mention that your mother was a Mudbl…Muggleborn, well there had to be a Will and one which should have definitely been adhered to."

"Oh there was," Bella interrupted. "Sirius bragged about it during the years we were imprisoned. As your godfather he was the main guardian, then came the Longbottoms, his cousin and my former sister Andromeda Tonks, McGonagall and Flitwick acting in tangent and several others who I can't remember or _who were not worth remembering_ ," she huffed.

"I think he mentioned the Bones – the ones with the daughter – and Amelia herself in tangent with Moody of all people" added Rabastan. "However, he mentioned that Dumbledore was not to be a guardian – too old and Lily hated him. She said she'd prefer even Snape to Dumbledore or the Weasleys."

"And my dearest cousin Sirius laughed at that as….well you should hear what he said about your mother," added Bella with smugness in her voice.

Harry had hated Bella for sending Sirius through the Veil, he had to admit that Sirius had been fooling around and Bella had merely hexed him with a stunning spell. As much as he hated to admit it, Bella was sort of "growing on him" once she stopped threatening to torture and kill him. Sirius was gone and now Bella and Rabastan were all he really had. His enemies were proving to be much better friends than his "loving relatives" the Dursleys had been, not to mention his "best mates" Ron and Hermione, the Weasleys, his Gryffindor housemates, the teachers, the entire school and most especially Dumbledore. It was depressing to admit but it was true nonetheless.

Once the "Terrible Two" as Harry had nicknamed Bella and Rabastan heard how he had been treated, they decided to instruct him in all of the things he should have been learning since he got out of nappies. It was interesting and enlightening to say the least.

One day during a lull in the instruction (even the verbose Bella had to stop to rest her voice on occasion) a thought occurred to Harry.

"Bella, if I really am Lord Black as you say and since I am in here for the rest of my life, does that mean that Draco gets the title and the goodies that go along with it?"

"No, you are still alive and even if you go completely and irrevocably insane, until you die the Lordship is yours."

"Then does Draco get it?"

"Legally no since we know that his first Will was irrevocable about you inheriting everything, but we don't know if he also made provisions just in case you died before begetting an heir. There was a lot of that going around back then – dying, I mean. So he could have named someone else. He could also have written out a new Will since he escaped and named an alternate or two then. I really think he would have done anything to disinherit Draco. He could have left a vial of blood for a posthumous blood adoption, although who he would name I have no idea. I guess we will never know."

"Well maybe we could," said Rabastan.

"How?"

"Harry here could try calling that miserable old house elf, the one who was spying for Narcissa once he contacted her and blabbed about the Black House being used as the Order of the Turkey-brains' Headquarters. What's his name?"

"Kreacher" yelled Harry. "Kreacher you miserable, backstabbing, betraying son of a Mundungus Fletcher-type, ugly SOB worthless excuse for a loyal house elf. Kreacher, come here NOW!"

And that was exactly what the miserable, backstabbing, betraying son of a Mundungus Fletcher-type, ugly SOB worthless excuse for a loyal house elf did. Unwillingly, but pop into Harry's cell he did. And he was not at all happy about having been forced to do it. He immediately starting complaining, insulting, whining and complaining some more, but come he had.

For a moment the three Magicals had been shocked but Harry soon snapped out of it. He grabbed the old elf by the neck, banged his head against the closest wall and asked, "So I am Lord Black, correct?"

Kreacher was forced to admit that yes, Harry was Lord Black. Then Harry quickly asked about the status of Grimmauld Place. Apparently it had been shut down after Sirius' death and even the Order couldn't get into the house despite Dumbledore's placement of the Fidelius. They knew where it was but the wards were impenetrable.

"Nasty Half-bloods and Blood Traitors kept trying to break in the house of the Great and Noble Black Family, but they can't. Goblins would not let Dumbledamn hire their ward breakers and even threatened to fire Blood Traitor Weasley who works for Goblins if he tried and since he is under "special Goblin contract and oath" he would die. It warms Kreacher's old heart to see…."

"Shut up you old bastard," shouted Harry before asking. "Kreacher, since you got in here, can you get us out?"

"Answer him Kreacher," yelled a desperate Bella.

Hearing a "true, proper and good member of the House of Black" doing the ordering Kreacher answered. "I thinks so unworthy master."

"Bella, Rabastan, could he be right? Could a house elf really break us out?"

"I don't know," Rabastan answered, "I don't think anybody has tried it. Maybe because of all the Dementors floating about but…."

"All right" said Harry. "I'll try and if I escape unharmed Kreacher will come back and get you two BUT, I'll need your word, your oath on….say your oath as a Black and your oath as a Lestrange until such time as you can swear on your life and magic that if I help you escape . . . .EVER."

Rabastan didn't have to think twice before swearing on oath on his family name. It took Bella about five seconds before she agreed adding "Only you."

"Kreacher take me away," Harry ordered.

It worked.

Everything belongs to JKRowling except the mad plots and the occasional character I have added. I make no money on this and just write to express my warped sense of imagination.

Chapter 3 – Revelation and Plotting

It took three days before the guard at Azkaban got the nerve up to report to the Ministry that not only had the dread Dark Lord Harry Potter escaped – yes escaped - from Azkaban but so had Bellatrix and Rabastan Lestrange. The warden hadn't wanted to believe it so he had checked for himself. Yep, there they weren't - just three very empty cells. No place to hide in those cells either so it wasn't like they would jump out and yell "boo – gotcha" or something like that. Nope, they were gone.

A very thorough search was made on the three cells, the hallways, the floors above and below the cells but nope, nothing was found, not a single clue as to how they had escaped. The two other Death Eaters on the far end of the hall had heard nothing other than the three escapees always talking to one another. There was no trace of magic, no damage had been done to the cells, no noise was heard, nothing out of the ordinary had happened – except for the escape of three very dangerous individuals.

Now Potter had been given the same cell which had been Sirius Black's cell and _**Black had been the only person to escape from Azkaban**_. Thus, another day was spent going over that cell with the proverbial fine tooth comb but nothing had been found. So to stall further, the warden had written a very precise, fact-filled report, made three official copies and sent it by owl mail to the Ministry.

Amelia Bones was not at her office to receive the report as she was at St. Mungo's recovering from a severe bout of Muggle flu, which she had caught after investigating an incident in Muggle London which necessitated interviewing several Muggles regarding an outbreak of Muggle-baiting.

Due to overwork her resistance was down and she had caught the Muggle illness. Her temporary replacement, an Auror in the pocket of Fudge, became slightly drunk with his temporary power and saw the report from Azkaban. He just tossed it into the in-basket thinking it was just the usual, dull weekly report and didn't think twice about it.

Therefore, it was another week before Amelia Bones came back and started to catch up on her paperwork and to fix the mess left by Fudge's lackey. It was late in the day when she finally got to the report and that is when the dragon dung hit the fan, the walls, the ceiling, the floor and the poor Aurors who valiantly ran into the Head of the DMLE's office when they heard her actually scream! She never did anything like scream before so they thought she was in danger. The danger was very real as her magic had started breaking loose due to her fury at reading the report, noticing the date and well…the ESCAPE OF THREE DANGEROUS INDIVIDUALS FROM AZKABAN.

Fudge was attending an afternoon reception hosted by the elegant Narcissa Malfoy to raise money for various this and thats. He was having such a good time that he didn't want to leave as the booze was flowing freely, the food was excellent and there were several worthies attending who he wanted to hit up for "campaign contributions."

Unfortunately for him, there were also several reporters, Rita Skeeter being the most prominent. She managed to get the best scoop since, well since the defeat of the last Dark Lord and the rise, conviction and incarceration of the latest Dark Lord. There had been just enough time for a hastily written article to make the pages of the evening edition and for the panic to start.

Naturally chills went down the spines of Magical Britain, especially certain people who had "cooperated" with Dumbledore in the imprisoning and continual vilification of the Dark Lord Harry Potter. The fact that nearly a fortnight had passed since the escape did not go unnoticed. Who knew what fiendish plans "Dark Harry" (the newest name given to the former Boy-Who-Lived) had time to concoct and put into play, assisted by two of the most evil, vile, unscrupulous and….well add in your own favorite words to describe the horror of it all.

Then there were those who had cooperated but did not fear because, after all, they knew exactly what Harry Potter was capable of – or not. The Weasleys, mainly Molly, Ron and Ginny, had Dumbledore's assurance and protection. For the past months since Harry Potter was placed in Azkaban the three Weasleys had finally been able to relax.

Ginny could start dating in earnest and not pretend to worship and "love" Harry Potter. Dumbledore had drawn up a marriage contract between Potter and Ginny and even though Potter would spend the rest of his life in Azkaban, Ginny, as his legal fiancé, would be eligible to get a chunk of his inheritance once he turned 17 and came into his money – the money from the Potter vaults which he didn't know he had. The fool thought all his parents had left him was the trust vault and it had been the Weasleys' job to keep that knowledge from him.

Thus, Ginny would get a large sum as a settlement, and be set for life. She could buy anything she wanted once she turned 17 and had access to it. She could also use it as an attractive dowry to land herself a good Pureblood husband, who of course would have a lot of his own money. In the meantime, she could have fun and enjoy herself.

Or so she thought. Her mother Molly _**knew**_ differently. Oh Ginny would be eligible for the settlement and it would be a very large sum, BUT, as Ginny was a year younger than Harry and she was technically the property of her parents, Molly would be getting the money. Arthur, as usual, knew nothing about Molly's deals and manipulations so he didn't know about the money and Molly would make sure he never did.

Of course Ginny would be getting money towards a dowry to get a proper husband, but Molly would be in control of everything. What Ginny didn't know wouldn't hurt her – or Molly.

Ron had been paid to be Harry's friend, keep him isolated, in the dark about all the things he should know and report back to Dumbledore everything Harry said, did and who tried to talk to him. He had been paid directly from Harry's trust vault, which the Ministry had tried to seize. At the moment, it was frozen as Dumbledore, the Ministry and the Goblins fought it out. No matter, Ron had a tidy nest egg which he could finally start spending.

Dumbledore had promised him a portion of the trust vault once he got complete control over it, but in the meantime Dumbledore had kept his other promises such as making Ron the fifth year Gryffindor Prefect, getting him a place on the Quidditch team despite his not deserving it, and, most importantly, gifting him with Potter's Firebolt. That had been the sweetest thing of all. Ron would have liked to have been given the invisibility cloak, but Dumbledore said he was keeping it for himself for the Greater Good, as well as the Marauders' Map.

Once Dumbledore had hinted that Ron would also be made Head Boy, but now Dumbledore was saying that Ron would actually have to do something impressive to earn it. Not to worry, being Head Boy was nice for the prestige and the perks but there was too much actual work involved so Ron didn't really care. It would have made his mother happy but what the hell she already had two sons who had been the Head Boy so that should satisfy her.

What made Ron the happiest was the fact that he didn't have to tolerate Granger any more. She had been made the fifth year Gryffindor Girls Prefect, but really there was no one else qualified. Ron had once broadly hinted to Dumbledore that he should make someone else Prefect like Lavender Brown just to see the expression on Granger's face. The Headmaster had laughed but said no, it would be a great prank but Miss Brown would be barely able to do her work as Prefect let alone his. Hermione did most of Ron's duties as he was too lazy. He did like to give detentions and deduct points from the other houses and to scare the first year Gryffindors as well as strut around demanding respect from the lower life forms but the actual work of a Prefect – no, let the Mudblood do it.

The other "perk" he received from the Headmaster was spelling Granger to do his homework for him. During the past five years she had been willing to "help" him, but not actually do it for him. He took what he could get. Now that she had been spelled, he didn't even have to order her to do it she just automatically did it for him. It wasn't as good as hers but it was a hell of a lot better than anything he could ever do. Since they took their NEWTS next year, she made a duplicate copy of all of her notes so that once the NEWTS drew closer, all he would have to do was to study a bit and he should be able to pass.

Dumbledore had informed him that no, she just couldn't take his NEWTS for him nor could he "fix" his grades as the Ministry was in charge of that and even the Great Albus Dumbledore couldn't help him there.

No matter life was still sweet and things were going his way. He didn't worry a bit when he heard Potter had escaped as so did Bellatrix and her husband – or was it her brother-in-law. No matter as Potter was probably dead or being horribly tortured and there was no way he could revenge himself on Ron.

However! Dumbledore had promised many things to many people. Some promises he had no intention whatsoever of keeping, such as most of the ones he had made to the Weasleys. Sure he and Molly had drawn up and signed a marriage contract between Ginerva and Harry, but since Dumbledore was NOT Harry Potter's legal magical guardian it was an illegal document. Also, it had been stated in Harry's grandfather's Will that no magical contracts could be drawn up for ANY POTTER HEIR for at least the next three generations and then only under unique and specific conditions. Nope, there was no valid marriage contract between Ginerva and Harry. But Molly didn't know that.

Dumbledore had planned to blame the Goblins when the pertinent dates came about. As the Goblins were notorious for double-dealing (at least with the poorer classes of wizards), Dumbledore had planned to put on his most "I-am-so-sorry-and-will-try-everything-in-my-power-to-fight-this-injustice" face. Meanwhile the Weasleys were his more than usual most devoted followers and would do just about anything he asked of them no matter what.

The trust vault was a different story. The Goblins had frozen Harry Potter's trust vault. Since he was a minor it could not be confiscated until he reached the age of 17 – that was the law. According to Harry's grandfather's Will, every year the vault had 12,000 galleons deposited since Harry became an orphan for "his upkeep" and every year Dumbledore had taken the money out for Harry's upkeep. Since Harry Potter was now residing in Azkaban, his upkeep was being paid for so Dumbledore had lost access to the vault.

The Goblins informed the Ministry that incarceration by the Ministry did not meet the terms of "upkeep of an orphan" according to law and the provisions of Charlus Potter's Will. No the trust vault was frozen. To make matters worse, only Harry Potter could claim the Potter vaults on his 17th birthday and even that was under certain terms and conditions, none of which could possibly be met as long as Potter languished in prison.

When he died, the estate would then pass onto the next Potter heir who proved worthy. Apparently there was either a Potter heir no one knew about, such as a Squibb or a bastard, or other special, ironclad provisions had been made and were to be kept private and secret and not the Ministry and especially not Albus Dumbledore could interfere.

Even when Potter died, the trust vault would then revert into the main Potter vaults. To put it bluntly – they weren't getting any of the Potter fortune.

No matter, Albus Dumbledore had plans. They would take a while to come into play, but they were only stalled at the moment, not forever stopped or thwarted. _**Because you see, Dumbledore knew things which other lessor mortals didn't.**_

Voldemort was not really dead – just like the last time. Dumbledore knew that Voldemort had a secret – well several secrets actually. ONLY DUMBLEDORE KNEW and he was not sharing this information with anybody. Even if he should die (and he certainly had no plans to do something like that in the near future – if ever), he had no made arrangements to share these secrets. He had every intention to fulfill his plans, then HE WOULD FINALLY BE THE ONE TO DEFEAT VOLDEMORT.

Meanwhile, although he needed Potter to carry out some of these plans, keeping him alive and in Azkaban served his purpose nicely. Never in his wildest dreams (and Dumbles had some pretty….well dreams you wouldn't want to know about), did Dumbles think that Harry Potter would actually kill Voldemort and IN FRONT OF WITNESSES. The damn brat just seemed to live to annoy Dumbledore.

That was the main reason he had Potter thrown to the wolves. He would be kept on ice in Azkaban until such time as Dumbledore had need of him. Then he would be sprung, "serve his purpose" and then could be disposed of. Hopefully he would also be able to claim his Potter inheritance which would then somehow make its way into Dumbledore's hands, with maybe a few crumbs being given to the Weasleys.

No one knew just how much money the Potter estate consisted of, although Dumbledore had been trying for years to find out. The Weasleys would take anything they were given and be more than grateful for it, while Dumbledore made off with the rest for use in the service of the Greater Good. Well at least Dumbledore's Greater Good.

You see Dumbledore had secrets, secrets and more secrets. Some of these secrets could never and would never be shared with anyone as they were…not the nicest of secrets and would severely and irreparably ruin his carefully crafted image as Leader of the Light and the greatest wizard since Merlin. In fact, if his plans worked out the way he wanted them to, he would soon pass Merlin's accomplishments and BE THE GREATEST WIZARD.

Okay, the greatest wizard in Britain and most of Europe, some of Africa, etc. There had been several other wizards greater than Merlin in Asia, Africa, the Americas, etc., but then in the British/European mind, only Merlin really counted for anything because he was…well British…and since Britain was part of Europe, he leached over into Europe and certain parts of Africa. So there!

When Dumbledore had the history books written his way, he would be the _greatest wizard_ , Merlin would be the _second greatest wizard_ , his once adored lover Gellert would be…well he would have several pages written, Voldemort a few less and Harry Potter…well if Dumbledore was generous maybe the boy would get a paragraph or two in passing, or at least a footnote. But that was contingent on the boy not pissing him off any more than he was currently doing.

The boy had to be around somewhere and he would be found. He knew the brat was still alive as the instruments which he kept in his office tracking, monitoring and helping to control the boy's life were still functioning.

Strangely, some of those instruments had broken. Granted the ones at the Dursleys were gone since the boy did not return to that hell hole for the summer as they needed recharging by leeching off of the boy's magic. The ones monitoring the boy at Hogwarts were redundant and Dumbledore had disconnected them. There had been many others (because Dumbledore was thorough) but they had all taken up a lot of space in his office, space he could put too much better use so those had been disposed of. It was not like Potter was going to the Burrow, Diagon Alley and Hogsmeade.

No, now only the ones linked to his life and health were working. Dumbledore knew for certain that the boy was not or could not become an animagus as he had personally blocked that talent in the boy along with his potential for Occlumency and Legitimacy. He was stuck in Azkaban until such time as Dumbledore let him out to fulfill his destiny. Or rather he had been.

Gringotts was under Ministry orders to apprehend and hold Potter should he, Bellatrix or Rabastan Lestrange try to obtain their funds. Whether the Goblins would pay any attention to these orders was debatable as Potter could only make a withdraw from his trust vault and the Goblins would demand a huge "fee" for keeping quiet should the boy show up.

Besides both the Ministry and Dumbledore had their stooges monitoring the entrance to Gringotts and Bill Weasley worked there so he was on constant alert. The boy would be found eventually so Dumbledore wasn't really worried.

Dumbledore had a lot to do. He had made shameless deals with Fudge and high profile Death Eaters like Lucius Malfoy. As they were captured in the act at the Ministry, Dumbledore had demanded and got their full cooperation. He would make certain that they could use the old Imperius alibi despite Amelia Bones screaming to make them take Veritaserum. In return….well they would become Dumbledore's….followers.

He had made them swear on their life and magic. They had to tell him all of Voldie's plans, hideouts, secrets, give the names of ALL Death Eaters and/or major sympathizers not to the Ministry but to him! Although Dumbledore would never tell his secrets, plans or ambitions, they were now not only Voldie's minions but Dumbledore's slaves.

The one thing he did tell them, after he had made them take the oath, was that it was still possible as well as probable that Voldie would once again resurrect. However, he could not come back unless he received help like he had from the likes of Peter Pettigrew and Barty Crouch, Jr. Dumbledore demanded to know if anyone other than those had known _**certain information**_ concerning the resurrection of Voldemort.

None of them had, but no matter if and when Voldie contacted them, no doubt in his wraith-like form, they were to play along until they could contact Dumbledore who would then take control.

"I have no doubt that you all wish to be freed from the slavery Tom had over you and once I have him in my control you will no longer be his slaves. I will be freeing you and giving you the opportunity to redeem yourselves. Naturally, you will become members of the Light and give up practicing dark magic. It is a fair trade, is it not?"

It was and it wasn't. Many Death Eaters had wished more than once that they had not taken the Dark Mark, even though they agreed with Voldemort's goals. Things had gone great until the signs of increasing insanity had arisen. They had been so close to winning but then in the last months before his defeat at the hands of the baby Harry Potter, Voldemort had radically changed for the worse.

He had been even worse once he had resurrected but that could have been due to the fact that most of his followers had well and truly abandoned him because they had never believed his claim that he was immortal. But he had been.

Now, however, to avoid Azkaban, receiving the Kiss or losing their wealth leaving their heirs destitute, they had to swear away their lives, honor and fortunes to Dumbledore. Everyone to a man (or witch) had always truly HATED DUMBLEDORE, but now they were under his complete control.

Lucius Malfoy had contemplated his new lot in life since his new enslavement. He, like some others he had secretly talked to, believed that once Dumbledore had their Dark Lord in his control, then they too would be doomed. Dumbledore needed them for his purposes, but having lived under his totalitarian reign as Headmaster, they knew that once he had no further use for them…well Lucius tried not to think about it.

He worried mainly for his son. Dumbledore had already informed them that he would be personally seeing to the re-education of their children to the ways of the Light. Eventually all practice of dark magic would be outlawed in Britain and "a new era of Light and Harmony will begin" he had told them.

Dumbledore had made a deal with Fudge to get his way and promised the incompetent Minister a life term as Minister of Magic IF he allowed him his way regarding the questioning and his plans for the "rehabilitation" of the Death Eaters. The fact that Dumbledore had spelled Fudge to obey him had helped greatly. After he had made all the Death Eaters swear the oath of allegiance to him, he had convinced a very drunk Fudge to also secretly swear the oath so now Fudge was a virtual slave to Dumbledore just as much as Lucius Malfoy and the others were.

To save their lives they had had to swear the oath to Dumbledore on their life and magic. It boiled down to them having to obey EVERYTHING Dumbledore ordered them to do and they had to do it _**exactly the way Dumbledore wanted them to and do it without question.**_ Therefore, if he ordered Lucius to divorce his wife and marry someone else, Lucius would have to do it. If Dumbledore _**ordered Lucius to kill his wife or his son**_ , he had to do it or else die himself.

In the past few months Lucius had just wished he had gone to Azkaban or been given the kiss not only for the sake of his family but for his own honor.

At first Dumbledore's orders had been "acceptable" to obey, such as betraying other Death Eaters, contributing money to some of Dumbledore's "charities" such as buying Nimbus 2002's to replace the old school brooms as well as gifting new brooms to the Gryffindor Quidditch team. That had been distasteful but doable. Then the blatant power grabs and unsettling demands began.

They were subtle at first, such as Arthur Weasley being made the Head of the Department of International Magical Cooperation, which was a very important position at the Ministry but Weasley had always been an ardent and faithful supporter of Dumbledore. Who wouldn't reward one's minions with a lucrative and important position?

Amelia Bones had been forced to "resign" her position no doubt because she disagreed with Dumbledore on too many things and refused to submit to the pressures he was putting her under. Malfoy would have to admit that the woman had integrity and honor and some of Dumbledore's new laws and goals went against her ideals. At least Dumbledore had given the woman the chance to "resign" and had not had her killed as Voldemort or even Lucius would have done.

She had been replaced by Kingsley Shacklebolt, an Auror in good standing but without the experience or political backing needed for such a high position. He was, however, another one of Dumbledore's faithful, hence his getting the position as Head of the DMLE instead of Rufus Scrimgeour who was rightfully next in line for the job.

The fact that she resigned shortly after her niece went back to school and was under Dumbledore's "protection" might have had something to do with the resignation. Draco had told his father the rumor going around the school, namely that certain students had written to their families shortly after the school term began that "They had decided not to return home that year for any of the school holidays and that since the Headmaster was enacting a new and _**very special summer program for select students**_ , that they might not be returning home during the summer holidays either."

He had sent his father a letter. Draco had taken a great risk sending his father the letter to inform him of the _**very special summer program**_ because apparently the mail was being monitored. To send the letter he snuck into the edge of the Forbidden Forest and past the school wards and called a Malfoy house elf and had the elf take the letter to his father. Draco was quite aware of the "oaths" his father and the parents of his classmates had had to swear and he didn't want to risk his being seen sending the information contained in the letter to his father. But he had to inform his father as soon as possible about what was happening at the school.

It seemed that Susan Bones was not the only student to write such a letter to her Aunt. No even neutral dark families and the neutral light families like the Bones were slowly being coerced into Dumbledore's web. All the Purebloods and even some of the notable Half-blood families were being pressured to join Dumbledore's "Path to the Light" whether they wanted to or not and what better way to "convince" a family than to have their children "request" that they join Dumbledore and support all of his policies.

According to Draco, it was becoming evident at Hogwarts that you and your parents were either "on Dumbledore's side – the side of the Right and the Light – or you were against him. To be "against" Dumbledore while attending HIS SCHOOL, was not going to be tolerated. Oh nothing was said officially but it was "understood" by the student body that very soon there would be no "neutrals" allowed. One had to make a choice by the end of this school year or….perhaps your own children would not be returning home.

The "select" children with "foolish, rebellious parents" would be free to "choose" their own path and the only logical, correct and sensible path was the one set by Headmaster Dumbledore. The benevolent Headmaster would arrange for students with such parents to be given refuge at Hogwarts until such time as the parents _**came to their senses**_ or the children reached the legal age of 17 and could join the Headmaster in his quest to bring Britain into the Light and right way of thinking.

Shortly after Lucius had received the letter, Dumbledore had introduced new bills which he wanted (or expected) the Wizengamot to pass. The bills were rather vague but made sense to Lucius now that Draco had sent him the letter. Combined, the bills granted Dumbledore even more power as the Headmaster of Hogwarts. Reading between the lines of the bills Lucius could see that Dumbledore was paving the way to basically hold any student he thought needed "protection" at Hogwarts until such time that they didn't need the protection anymore or until they graduated.

He was kidnapping the children and holding them as hostages until their parents or guardians caved into his demands. Once they had set foot on school grounds that year they were going to stay there until such time as Dumbledore released them.

Draco and the children of the Death Eaters who had "sworn allegiance" were apparently not going to be one of the "select" at least for now. The option was there. All the neutrals in Slytherin House had been forced to write the letter to their parents and Snape had overseen the writing, collected the letters and saw to the letters being sent out. But then what choice did Snape have?

Lucius wondered if eventually everybody in Britain would be required to swear the oath to Dumbledore. At the moment it looked like anyone with a children attending Hogwarts were going to have to if they wanted their children back. Would the children have to swear allegiance also? Once a child received their wand and legally started to practice magic, they were capable of swearing an oath on their life and magic. Was this Dumbledore's master plan?

Besides the bills being introduced, Dumbledore was privately sending letters to all his new Light wizards (Death Eaters he had in his power) for contributions towards a special school fund he wanted to endow. After all one had to feed and clothed one's prisoners and Hogwarts did have a budget.

The request for the contribution was not negotiable. Oh it wasn't said in the letter but it was understood by Lucius. The amount of the contribution was stated in each letter. Naturally since the Malfoys had much more money than the Goyles, the donation was proportioned to the contributor's financial situation. Lucius' donation was 25,000 galleons, William Nott's was 10,000 galleons and Goyle's was 1,000 galleons. As the Crabbe family was having some financial difficulties at the moment, Dumbledore had "asked" Lucius to donate 1,000 galleons on behalf of Crabbe.

Oh yes, Dumbledore was turning out to be a much worse and much darker lord than Voldemort. And there was nothing that Lucius or any of the others could do about it.

Everything belongs to JKRowling except the mad plots and the occasional character I have added. I make no money on this and just write to express my warped sense of imagination.

Chapter 4 – Discussions, Finances, Gossips and Plans

An unwilling Kreacher had rescued Harry Potter, Bellatrix and Rabastan Lestrange from Azkaban. Harry Potter was the miserable Half-blood, blood traitor who had been made the heir of his late despicable master and now poor Kreacher was bonded to serve him. Rabastan Lestrange was a good and decent Pureblood, but Kreacher never liked him. He considered the Lestrange Family as not good enough for any Black daughter, but it was not Kreacher's place to judge the wisdom of his Black masters and mistresses.

He did like Bellatrix as she was a Black and a faithful Pureblood. He didn't love her like he did Narcissa Black Malfoy. Even though she had married an unworthy (in his old elf eyes at least) Malfoy, she was beautiful and kind to him and had helped him get rid of the hated disappointment which had been Sirius Black, so he had and especially now always would love Mistress Narcissa. Mistress Bellatrix was too cruel and CRAZY even for him and his late beloved Mistress Walburga, so he only "liked" her.

He had been a good and faithful elf and all he wanted now was to die and have his head placed on the wall of honor where the heads of his ancestors were now proudly hanging. He had hoped that the hated Harry Half-blood would kill him for betraying bad Master Sirius and then that kind, crazy but honorable Bellatrix would hang his head on the wall. It wasn't happening that way.

No, as his "punishment" for betraying Master Sirius, Half-blood Harry was forcing poor Kreacher to serve him for the rest of his miserable days. Only then would his head hang on the wall of honor after his death and _**only if he served him well and faithfully**_. Kind but crazy Mistress Bellatrix and agreed with Half-blood Harry so Kreacher was screwed.

There were also many things which Kreacher had to swear to do. He could not ever contact ANYBODY, especially good Mistress Narcissa, her son and definitely not Lucius Malfoy, any member of the Order of the Phoenix (not that Kreacher would ever consider doing that unless directly ordered), the Ministry or any of its employees and…well just about everybody else and DEFINITELY NOT DUMBLEDORE.

After swearing that, having done extra bonding rights overseen by Mistress Bellatrix and being glared at by the Half-blood, as well as her showing Half-blood how to bind the wards to him, Kreacher had to prepare an excellent meal then pop off to acquire many special potions, some new clothes for all of them, then come back to clean up the messes made by the three after their long baths were done. He had had to disillusion himself so that the clothiers and vendors in Knockturn Alley would not recognize him.

The next day Harry sent Kreacher to Gringotts. Bellatrix had sworn to him that when it concerned money, the Goblins were more than willing to accommodate their valued customers. Bellatrix had written to the Lestrange Account Manager as well as the Account Manager for the Black Family. She demanded that they both gather together all the ledgers and Wills concerning the Lestrange and Black Family, namely, Rudolphus' and Sirius' Wills. Naturally they had to swear on their Goblin honor not to inform anybody (other than Bank Director Ragnok) about this request and then they would be allowed to come to the Black home so that the accounts could be examined and explained to the new Lord Black.

This was done. Skull Cleaver, the Lestrange accountant, and Ironclaw, the Black accountant, arrived at Grimmauld Place shortly before noon. More oaths were sworn, blood drawn for proofs, questions were asked and explanations given. Kreacher served lunch, including some Goblin favorites which he acquired from a Goblin-run takeout as he was not about to lower himself to cook Goblin food. The Goblins didn't care they just ate and nosily enjoyed their food.

Harry James Potter was indeed the current Lord Black. Sirius had made out his Will once Harry was born and he became his godfather and underwent the "child of the heart" ceremony. Since there was a war going, he had made other arrangements should both he and/or Harry died. If Harry was dead but had a sibling(s), since James and Sirius were related via James' mother Dorea Black Potter, then any child of James' body would inherit the Lordship.

If Harry was dead and had no living siblings, then the first male heir of his cousin Andromeda Black Tonks would inherit. Since at the time of Harry's birth, Andromeda had a daughter, and if Andromeda did not birth another heir, then the first male heir of her daughter would inherit. Sirius had made it perfectly clear that no child of his cousin Narcissa Black Malfoy would ever inherit anything of Sirius' whether it was the Lordship or a bent knut from his vault.

But as Ironclaw informed them, Sirius Black had filed his Will with an ironclad requirement. This was his Last Will and Testament. If at any time in the future he wanted to make out another Will, he must personally come to Gringotts with the Black Family attorneys, he must be thoroughly checked for spells, curses, potions, hexes, etc. and if none are found on him, he must prove his identity by a blood test, make the Will out in the presence of the Goblins and his solicitors, and it will be signed, witnessed and filed of record the same day. If even one of these requirements is not met, then the new Will is to be considered invalid and illegal and the proper authorities are to be notified.

"Sirius Black was a bit paranoid when it came to certain things," Ironclaw told them. "At the time he made out his Will, he was afraid that Draco Malfoy would be claimed his heir and would not put anything passed Lucius Malfoy – especially if Sirius died as the Lord Black."

The Goblin then grinned and handed Harry a new Will, "He was correct that a false Will would be made under his name and although it was not due to any Malfoy attempts, this Will is…enlightening shall we say."

Three months before his death "Sirius Black" had apparently made out a new Will and since he was a fugitive at the time, he had written, signed it with a blood quill, had it witnessed by certain parties, and then hand-delivered to Ironclaw at Gringotts via Fawkes the Phoenix.

After glancing at the Will, Harry handed it back to Ironclaw and asked if the Goblin would read it aloud. Although the Harry was still named as Sirius' heir, Nymphadora Tonks' potential son was not named as heir if Harry Potter died. Instead she was left a sum of 50,000 galleons as a dowry. A few other bequests were made such as to Remus Lupin (10,000 galleons), Arthur and Molly Weasley for their care of Harry Potter (25,000 galleons), Ron Weasley because he was Harry's "Best Mate" (25,000 galleons), Hermione Granger (10,000 galleons) for books and to the Order of the Phoenix and/or Albus Dumbledore, Grimmauld House and 100,000 galleons to fight Voldemort.

This had Bellatrix on the verge of screaming until Harry told her to "wait for it…" Ironclaw then read that Harry James Potter would inherit the Lordship and the rest of Sirius' money and properties. Sirius also had arranged an unbreakable marriage contract between Harry and Ginerva Molly Weasley as "There is no other girl worthy of being the future Lady Black than Ginerva. She is a Pureblood, a powerful and talented witch, a girl of exceptional beauty, grace, honor, loyalty and the very best example of what a young witch should be and Harry could not do better if he searched the entire Magical World."

Bellatrix did scream when she heard this but Harry stopped her by saying, "He's not done yet."

Sirius then began a series of praising such people as the Weasley Family, several Order of the Phoenix members, Remus Lupin and most especially Albus Dumbledore. He then asked that Severus "Snivellus" Snape be severely cursed, naming the curses he wanted done, and then, actually castrated. He offered the sum of 10,000 galleons to be paid to whoever did the actual castration.

Harry then remarked that although that sounded like something Sirius would say, he sincerely doubted that _he would actually put it in his Will and set aside a sum to pay for the deed to be done_.

Bellatrix harrumphed saying "Yes he would BUT something like that is illegal unless you have a family feud declared and even then it has its limits – like you raped the daughter of the house or something."

There was more to the Will, which Harry thought was the very best reason why Sirius hadn't written this Will. If Harry died without issue, then since Arthur Weasley was the grandson of Lysandra Black, he or a son of his could claim the Lordship. Sirius then named Ronald Bilius Weasley as the Lord Black, as "he is a brave, outstanding, noble, young wizard who deserves a Lordship for all the aid, support, friendship, loyalty and steadfastness he has shown to not only Harry but to me. He has impressed me greatly and outside of Harry I think of Ron as a son."

Bella fell off her chair after hearing that. She even started to hyperventilate and Rabastan called for Kreacher to fetch a calming potion for her and then a bottle of fire whiskey and several glasses. "We all need a drink after hearing that," he said.

It was hard to say who was the more surprised that Rabastan offered the Goblins a drink of the wizard liquor, but offered and drunk it was.

After downing the potion and a healthy glassful, Bella opined that "Apparently Dumbledamndick didn't know Sirius had made requirements."

"No," Ironclaw replied, "Although he did snoop around and ask if Sirius had left a Will shortly after he was incarcerated in Azkaban. We refused to tell him, but he did try at least once a year after that. I gather that he just drew up the new Will, compulsed Sirius Black into signing it with a blood quill and then had it delivered, not knowing that it was completely illegal and Gringotts was not going to tell him."

"Did he try to have the Will probated after Sirius' death and my incarceration?"

"Of course, but that was when we finally advised him of the requirements. It hasn't stopped him, the Ministry or the Malfoys from trying to get the estate, but there is nothing short of a war against the Goblin Nation that will allow them to obtain it."

Then the Potter Will was discussed. Ironclaw had contacted Goldfist, the Potter Account Manager. Apparently the Goblins knew that Dumbledore had been blocking all of Harry Potter's mail since he took over as "Harry's Magical Guardian" on November 1, 1981 even before Sirius was sent to Azkaban. This was for the "boy's safety" and because he was an infant. Dumbledore always told the Goblins that Harry had opted for Dumbledore to keep taking care of all of his affairs since he was under-aged and but a mere schoolboy. Therefore, Harry was totally unaware that his parents had even made a Will and that he had more than just his trust vault OR THAT HE HAD BEEN EMANCIPATED.

It seemed that for him to be allowed to compete in the Triwizard Tournament he had to be of age or emancipated. Despite the fact that Harry hadn't put his name in the Goblet, HE HAD BEEN TOLD that he HAD TO COMPETE OR LOSE HIS MAGIC. However, he could ONLY COMPETE if he was of age or emancipated so therefore, he was immediately and magically emancipated when he was forced (by Dumbledore) to accept the fact that he was entered even if it had been done by someone else. Worst of all, Dumbledore knew it

"So I really didn't have to compete in the Tournament?"

"No, not unless or until you had been emancipated, and then _**you accepted the fact**_ and actually participated in the first task," Ironclaw said. "Once you participated in the first task, it became irrevocable."

The next few moments saw Harry cursing Dumbledore with every cuss and insult he knew. Bella and Rabastan both assisted him by adding a few horrible ones that they knew of. The Goblins just sat there grinning. They let the boy vent before informing him about his Potter heritage.

Despite the best efforts of both Dumbledore and the Ministry, his trust vault was not confiscated and he could withdraw some or even all of the funds. He was advised to withdraw some for his immediate needs and then to transfer the rest to another Gringotts.

Legally he could access the main Potter vaults, but he was advised that he not do this until he recovered from his time at Azkaban and the evident abuse he had suffered since childhood as inheriting the Potter ring and Lordship was a trial by ordeal and worthiness and Harry needed to be in prime physical, mental and emotional condition before attempting it.

The Ministry and the Malfoys had been unable to seize the Lestrange accounts. Rabastan was now the Head of House since his brother's demise. He was advised to name an heir and make out a Will as he was now an even more wanted criminal.

The Goblins then explained to the three exactly what had been going on in Magical Britain. They were appalled by what Dumbledore was doing.

Skull Cleaver was especially virulent in his denouncement of Dumbledore. Several of his accounts were of neutral families and they had come to Gringotts for help in not only leaving the country (and naturally transferring their assets to another Gringotts) but now, since the start of school, families were hysterical concerning what was happening to their children.

"Both Gringotts and their personal solicitors have advised these families that while they may be able to leave Britain, take their wealth and under-aged children with them, unless they acquiesce to Dumbledore's demands and obey his new "laws," they will no doubt lose any children currently attending Hogwarts."

Even Bellatrix was shocked. "Even our Lord during his most…troubling outbreaks…would not do anything like this. How is he even allowed to be doing this?"

The Goblins took turns informing the three about what had happened, especially to the "free" Death Eaters.

"How could Lucius of all people allow this to happen to him?" asked Bella.

"This time he had no choice. It was either side and obey Dumbledore or be sent to Azkaban or kissed. Several wizards were."

"Who?"

"The Carrow Twins, Dolohov, Jugson, and Walden Macnair," was the reply. "They thought that like the last time they could plead the Imperius….but they were very wrong. Since they did not possess the wealth, power or prestige like a Lucius Malfoy, nor were they the sycophants of any of the important ones, they were quickly sentenced. Also since they were from a lesser house, their estates could be confiscated without trouble. No doubt their fate served as a warning to the others."

"So are you saying that Dumbles is taking over Britain?" Harry asked.

"Yes."

"How can he get away with it? I mean after all the years he has been the ultimate "goodie two-shoes' he now shows his true colors and starts kidnapping, blackmailing and using innocent children."

"You must remember that for over the past _half century_ , he has been seen as a leader of the light side. It is his claim to fame. He has educated or at least overseen the education of the last four generations of Hogwarts students and has great influence. He is Head of the ICW, the Wizengamot and defeater of Grindelwald and is also on the Board of Directors of several charities and important Wizarding business. He has a finger in every proverbial pie both in Britain and on the Continent."

"There has never been a breath of scandal connected with his name – he's always managed to hide or cover up certain of his youthful escapes. Most people, unless they were followers of the late Dark Lord, believe him to be the most powerful, influential, learned and respected wizard since the great Merlin himself. He was an apprentice of Nicolas Flamel, discovered – _**or so it is said**_ – the twelve uses for dragon's blood, written several scholarly tomes, mentored several notable protégées and is considered a leading authority in several areas of magic."

"Then there is the fact that he personally founded and led the Order of the Phoenix – not that it ever did anything great or truly worthwhile – and, last but not least, was the magical guardian and MENTOR of the Boy-Who-Lived. He then SAVED THE WORLD when the Boy-Who-Lived became the next Dark Lord by murdering the current Dark Lord."

Skull Cleaver interrupted saying, "Even those closest to him believe that everything he does is right and just. It is said that no one ever disputes his orders and in the few instances that someone dares to, they usually bow down to and obey his will…eventually. It is said that he never makes mistakes…"

At this Harry snorted loudly. Oh if people only knew…well they'd probably still believe what Dumbledore told them even if the truth was staring them in the face.

"As I was saying, they say he never makes mistakes and freely dispenses his wisdom to all those who ask – and to those that don't. If anyone does disagree with him, they keep it to themselves as…well there were rumors in the first war about some of his followers…meeting untimely ends."

"Oh are you referring to certain people, even Order members, who were horribly tortured and/or killed by Death Eaters – but yet we Death Eaters were not responsible," Rabastan shouted.

"What do you mean by that?" asked Harry.

"Exactly that. At various times certain people were listed as tortured and/or killed by our Lord's forces, except for the fact that _we didn't do it_."

"Ah then the rumors were true?" asked Ironclaw.

Bellatrix hadn't said anything for a while so she had to jump into the conversation. "It vexed our Lord greatly. We never disguised what we did and proudly boasted of our victories, but also we accepted our defeats. However, there were killings which had not been ordered by our Lord and which none of us could claim credit for."

"In other words," Rabastan added, "after careful investigation – via torture and Veritaserum - our Lord came to the conclusion that there were wizards masquerading as his followers, doing sometimes unspeakable things which even the likes of Bella wouldn't do, and the next thing you heard was our Lord and his followers being accused of atrocities…"

"Which we didn't even get the chance to do," snapped a disappointed Bella.

Rabastan jumped right back in, "As I was trying to tell Harry and our Account Managers, the deaths were of the _**wrong people**_. People which our Lord would **never target** or who were too well protected for even us to have access to. Yet they were killed and we were blamed and it wasn't as if we could stroll into the Ministry and tell them 'We didn't do it, you better look for the real killers' now could we?"

"And you are subtly hinting, I suppose, that somehow, in some way Dumbles had a hand in it?" asked Harry.

"Exactly" said Rabastan.

"That is what our Lord thought," added Bella.

"And that is what we Goblins had suspicions about but could never prove."

"We also had a few of our more at risk clients ask us to make inquiries," said Ironclaw. "I won't mention any names, but there were some high profile wizards who just before their untimely deaths had reason to believe that their days were numbered and not by Death Eaters."

"Not every sympathizer of the Dark Lord took the mark," said Rabastan. "Although many believed with our Lord's views, some were not free to act whether it was due to a head of family forbidding them, ill-health, lack of magical power, youth and other reasonable excuses. However, they would support him and us in other ways, such as donations, recruiting, and writing letters of recommendation to overseas clients, friends, acquaintances or relatives. Some just kept their eyes and ears open and passed along interesting or useful information. Many of these people were the ones tortured or killed, but it wouldn't have been logical for us to kill them as they were _helping_."

"Don't forget those killed to get certain people publically discredited," added Bella. "Abraxas Malfoy was Lucius' father. According to the _Daily Prophet_ he, along with a few of his associates, had a luncheon meeting and at that meeting they were all exposed to dragon pox and died within a few days. The real story was that at that meeting, they were attacked by so-called Death Eaters and killed. Due to the importance of the individuals present, it was decided by the Minister to hide the truth and tell the public they died due to dragon pox. It is a very dangerous disease to get especially when a wizard is older, so that was listed as the official cause of death."

"What Bella is trying to say is that Death Eaters did not kill those at the meeting," Rabastan said. "Abraxas was one of the Dark Lord's first followers – a friend even – as well as one of the largest contributors. He was faithful to the cause and not a hint of betrayal could ever be traced to him. He was also Lucius' father. They may not have seen eye-to-eye at times, like most fathers and sons, but Lucius was devastated at his father's death."

"Our Lord personally interrogated every one of his followers, going so far as to send for those assigned overseas. Snape was brewing Veritaserum for days. Our Lord even dosed Snape and ruthlessly questioned him. No one was found guilty. Our Lord was furious and vowed vengeance for the loss of his friend and faithful follower, although he would allow Lucius the privilege of deciding the manner of death once the guilty parties were discovered."

"Should we tell little Harry who else 'caught the pox'?" Bella cooed.

Rabastan sighed before continuing. "Just so you know, Wilton Longbottom, Bernard Bones, Lionel Everett and Charlus Potter – your grandfather – were also 'killed' by exposure to dragon pox. From what Lucius told us, the meeting had been called to discuss…how do I say this…..to discuss a settlement, the possibility of a truce, a meeting of minds so to speak with a view towards sitting down and discussing terms and conditions upon which Magical Britain might be able to come to an agreement regarding the major issues."

"Apparently Charlus Potter had contacted the other four because 'something had to be done and done soon before we destroyed our world' or something like that. He wanted to meet with our Lord and see exactly what his views and goals were. Abraxas and Everett were members of the "Dark" and you will be surprised to learn, although mostly considered 'light wizards' Potter, Longbottom and Bones were really neutrals."

"You better explain the meaning of neutrals to him," Bella added.

Sighing again (much to the Goblins' amusement) Rabastan continued.

"Lesson No. 1 – Dark/Light/Neutral" the wizard said channeling his inner teacher. "Dark magic is NOT EVIL despite what _**certain wizards**_ say. It is really a more intense, a more hands on and powerful type of magic. Not every wizard or witch is capable of doing a lot of dark magic because they don't have the proper…."

"Energy, power and sometimes the proper frame of mind" Bella interrupted.

"Light magic can be powerful but usually it is just what you, or at least I, would call an everyday type of magic. It depends on the wizard or witch. Now persons like Dumbledore would argue with you to the end of time, but Light magic is the only magic which can be done by a weak wizard or witch."

"If it wasn't for the fact that for generations their families were dark wizards, Crabbe and Goyle _**could be considered light**_. Oh they can do dark spells but only with a lot of practice and expending a lot of energy. They also weaken quickly and have to get into a battle, do as much damage as possible and leave at the first opportunity. They have to use their magic sparingly so that they can access it and use it when it really counts. I hear their kids are the same way."

"Dumbledore is known as a – no THE – Leader of the Light and is considered a Light Wizard. However, he is powerful enough to do dark magic and according to rumors which my father told Rudolphus and me, when he was younger old Albus dabbled in the darker magics. The Dumbledore Family was not exclusively known as Light and it is only due to Albus going around saying he is the Leader of the Light and the enemy of the Dark that people actual see and believe he is, in fact, a Light wizard. Since he is definitely a powerful wizard, he uses that to prove to people that the Light is powerful and then tells everyone that Dark Magic is evil."

While Rabastan was telling Harry the differences, the boy glanced at both Goblins and both Goblins slyly nodded signifying that Rabastan was telling the truth.

"Now we come to Neutral or Grey magic. Our Lord always said that there is no such thing as Dark or Light Magic only power and those not afraid to use it. Grey is really a 20th Century…. invention. A Grey is supposedly a wizard or a witch who practice both Dark and Light magic equally. That sounds right, but it is really wrong."

"That's because you forgot to mention the Old Ways," shouted Bella.

"Sorry Bella, but you interrupted me before I could add it in and I lost my train of thought," snapped her brother-in-law.

"Another 20th Century invention – invented by Dumbledore just so you know – is that practicing the Old Ways or the Old Religion is evil and therefore Dark."

"What do you mean the Old Ways or the Old Religion? asked Harry. "I didn't think Magic had a religion."

"That's because you are not taught it at Hogwarts," said Bella. "I'm taking over Rusty since you are making a right mess of things."

"Now Harry," she began, "Magic is in itself a form of religion, but there are powerful beings who can be considered as gods and goddesses. Herne the Hunter, Morrigan, Cernunnos, Epona are a few British deities just like Odin, Thor, Zeus, Hera, Isis, Osiris, etc. are deities of other times and countries. Even the more modern gods like the Christ, Buddha, Allah, etc. are powerful beings or representations of the 'Uncaused Cause' as the creator of all things is sometimes called."

"As far as I know those deities were at the very least a mage level magical and probably more. They did live for a very long time and some are still in existence, they just don't get involved very much anymore and mainly just contact their followers every so often. One just may be the Uncaused Cause, for this world at least. We know there is life throughout the Universe…"

"Wait YOU KNOW for a fact there is life throughout the Universe?"

"Ha, how does it feel to get interrupted Bella?" snapped Rabastan after Harry interrupted her monolog.

"Yes Harry little lamb lord, Magic tells us there is life and magic throughout the Universe. It is only logical. Now where was I? Ah, yes. Shortly after he gained prominence and power after defeating Grindelwald, Dumbledore started a movement which basically denounced any form of religion. He did it very subtly, saying that it was scaring off the Muggleborns who mostly believed in the Christ, Allah or whoever. Therefore, _**to accommodate the Muggleborns**_ religion should be ignored at least in Hogwarts. He had been nagging Dippet – the Headmaster before him – and convinced him that since Purebloods and most Half-bloods already knew about magical religions, there was no need to scare the Muggleborns by teaching them the Old Ways."

"Once he became the Headmaster, he basically banned all religious practices. That is why Hogwarts celebrates Halloween instead of Samhein and the Christmas holidays instead of Yule or the Solstice. When I was at school we could attend the Halloween feast, then go off and privately celebrate Samhain. By the time Narcissa graduated, we were 'officially' forbidden to practice any religious rites while attending Hogwarts. The old hypocrite even closed down the Muggle chapel."

"There's a Muggle chapel at Hogwarts?"

"There still is, it just isn't used anymore not even for 'private reflection' as the Muggles call it. Dumbledore closed it off the same year he outlawed our rites. Before that there was always a wizard who was an ordained minister, priest or rabbi and who would take turns giving Sunday services I think they are called. Well Dumbledickprick stopped all of that 'superstition' and I bet your Mudblood friend doesn't even know it existed."

Harry had to give Bella a little credit as she had actually been using the term Muggleborn instead of Mudblood and had only just now slipped no doubt because she had been referring to Hermione.

"What Bella is trying to say is that Dumbledore is an atheist. According to him, only those who are Dark practice the Old Ways – the evil pagan wickedness which is our religious heritage. The Light is above all that and does not believe in superstition and are thus the only pure and correct representatives of magic for the Muggleborns."

"What does this have to do with being Grey?"

"There is no Grey just neutral," Bella shouted.

"Back to Charlus Potter, Longbottom and Bones," said Rabastan, "They believed in and PRACTICED the Old Ways and strongly disagreed with Dumbledore regarding what was evil and what was good. They were too powerful for him to browbeat and much too outspoken for his liking. To put in bluntly, they did not get along with him."

"The only sons and heirs of both Potter and Longbottom had recently graduated, had both become Aurors and were stupid enough to join Dumbledore's Order. It was said that James and his father fought constantly. James had become a devoted follower of Dumbledore and so had Sirius Black who as you now know, being a relative of his wife Dorea, had been taken in and protected by House Potter."

"The rest is only gossip, but it was said that the only reason James had been allowed to marry the Muggleborn Evans was because Dorea was dying and wanted to have a grandchild. Gossip said that Charlus also wanted a grandchild because he feared that James was going to get himself killed and thus end the Potter line. The other very interesting rumor was that once the child was born, Charlus was going to take custody of the child and James was going to be disinherited due to his blind allegiance to Dumbledore."

Ironclaw now interrupted as both he and Skull Cleaver had spent a lot of time with these clients, important as they were, and still had a lot of advice to give and recommendations to be made. Time was money after all and they had drunk all the fire whiskey.

"What Lord Lestrange is trying to delicately say is that Dumbledore knew about the meeting, he did not want the cessation of the war unless it was on his terms, meaning he would defeat another Dark Lord and once again be a hero, and most important, **he wanted to mold the Magical World according to his will**. If the meeting was successful it was entirely possible that the forces of the Dark Lord and the Ministry could come to an agreement that _**would benefit both sides and peace would come**_."

"Yes that is what I am trying to say but it should be noted that such an agreement would not only end the war and save lives and property, it would also end Dumbledore's vision of the Greater Good. Therefore if those _treacherous Death Eaters_ attacked and killed everybody at the meeting, the war would still continue, Dumbledore could possibly win on his terms and the Light would be the dominant force in first Magical Britain and then eventually the World."

"Yes," added Bella quickly, "then Lucius could be accused of arranging for his father's death and condemned by society for such a foul deed. Or else possibly reconsider his allegiance to our Lord. The latter would get him killed, but since his wife was pregnant with his heir, Dumbledore could swoop in and offer to 'save' my poor sister and her unborn heir. No doubt Sirius would be assigned that task as he and Narcissa always got along and she since was in a delicate condition and fearful for her and her unborn child's life, it might have worked."

"Then Frank Longbottom and Henry Bones would have to avenge their fathers' death if only by voting for all of Dumbledore's policies."

There was a notable silence for a few moments before Harry turned to the Goblins and asked, "And what are they not telling me about my father?"

"It was rumored that James Potter had told his closest friends that when he inherited the Lordship, he was turning his vote in the Wizengamot over to Dumbledore as James was bored by all "that boring political stuff" as he termed it. He would also be using the Potter fortune to finance the Order of the Phoenix. Once the Dark Lord was defeated by Dumbledore, James, being an Auror, would naturally be appointed as Head of the DMLE by Dumbledore with Sirius Black being his second in command."

"Was my grandfather in ill health?"

"No he was a very robust wizard and it was quite possible that once his wife died, he just might remarry and sire another heir or two. Due to his wealth, power, influence and the fact that he was a handsome man still in his prime, there would be no lack of suitable candidates being offered by their families."

"Before you stop to brood" Rabastan added quickly, "no one is accusing James Potter of being involved in his father's death. No he was suitably upset at the memorial service and…"

"But then that could be due to his mother having a heart attack and dying when she heard about her husband's murder," Bella quickly added.

"As I was saying before being interrupted YET AGAIN, James Potter acted as any son would do upon the death of not one but both parents. The press ate it up, especially playing on the fact that Dorea Potter died due to grief as she…"

"Couldn't live without the true love of her life..."

"BELLA!"

"She was my relative so I get to tell the next part. I did attend the memorial service after all being a relation. Rusty is correct that the press was playing on the 'great love' aspect. One could almost feel sorry for the Longbottoms, Bones and Everetts as the death of their patriarch barely merited any attention."

"They were probably trying to distract the public from noticing how five very prominent Heads of House very suddenly died at the same time from 'dragon pox' within a mere day of exposure and your Great Aunt Dorea's death was a good opportunity for the public not to start asking questions."

"Well if you remember Rusty, there were many rumors saying that Lucius had arranged for his father's death – via dragon pox. Narcissa nearly mis-carried Draco because she was so upset at the stares and accusations by those attending Abraxas's funeral that she couldn't even go to Great Aunt Dorea's memorial."

"Lady Lestrange is correct Lord Black," Ironclaw added. "It seems that Sirius Black was broadcasting about his 'gut feeling' that Lucius Malfoy had spiked the drinks or food at the luncheon with the pox sickness which caused all five wizards to immediately catch the disease and hasten their demises. Naturally being an Auror and the Ministry desperately trying to hush up the real cause of death, he had probably been ordered to adhere to the dragon pox excuse."

"No doubt on the orders of Dumbledore," Rabastan sneered. "Pettigrew told our Lord that Dumbledore had been furious about the Ministry cover up, so he had his followers spread the rumor about Lucius using 'biology war' to cause…"

"Biological warfare" said Harry.

"Yes, that sounds right. Dumbledore wanted Lucius, thus our Lord's supporters blamed for the deaths even though WE DIDN'T DO IT. At the very least it would make Lucius look suspicious in society's eyes and his taking up his father's seat on the Wizengamot would and did become quite awkward."

"How did my father react?"

There was another one of those uncomfortable silences. Rabastan and Bella glanced at each other no doubt trying to decide which of them should break the next bit of news. Harry noticed and simply turned to the Goblins and asked them to "spill it." He then had to explain what the use of that Muggle term meant.

Ironclaw answered. "Let us say that James Potter had to be restrained when he came into Gringotts for the reading of his father's Will. I am not the Potter Account Manager and even if I was I could not reveal the contents of the Will. Likewise the solicitors of the Wizarding firm of Whitby, Wickham and Wolsey who have handled the Potter Family legal matters for generations are barred by a wizard's oath, not to reveal the particulars of the Will."

Skull Cleaver decided to throw his two knuts in by saying, "However, even in Gringotts some things cannot help but be noticed especially when a wizard throws a massive temper tantrum and certain Headmasters of a certain magical school have spent the past 15-16 years trying to break Charlus Potter's ironclad, unbreakable, irrevocable Will. But this I can tell you – simply because James Potter had to be thrown out of the bank and it was done in front of wizards and witches who were there doing their banking."

"Oh, are we finally going to find out what really happened regarding James' inheritance?" asked an eager Bella.

Ironclaw replied, "All that is truly known and can be told is James Potter had to swear an oath on his life and magic not to divulge the contents of the Will to ANYONE, not even his wife, Sirius Black and especially not to Dumbledore. He had to swear it before he was allowed to hear the Will behind closed doors. He was very angry and despite knowing the laws of Gringotts pulled his wand out and tried to curse the Goblins and the solicitors after hearing the contents. It was only due to his Family's high status that he was not….seriously… injured by the Goblin warrior guards.

"Yes but why?" whined Bella.

"He was mostly disinherited."

Bella and Rabastan took in a deep breath shocked from hearing the rumor actually being confirmed. Harry merely asked, "Why?"

"No one knows except for the Potter Account Manager, Lord Ragnok, the Leader of Gringotts' British Branch and the solicitors, and they, like James Potter, were and still are under magical oath and the Will itself and some copies are safely hidden from anyone hoping to find out the contents. The Will is not to be made public or read again until The Heir – meaning you Lord Black, reaches legal age. Naturally you will have to swear a magical oath before you get to read it and no doubt must past the heritage test to claim the Lordship, but until then it remains a deep, dark secret."

"James did get some inheritance," Rabastan said. "Pettigrew bragged that he had access to some small Potter properties, an allowance of 25,000 galleons a year for his personal use and as soon as it was announced that an heir was to be born, Charlus established your trust vault and even placed certain unbreakable conditions on that."

"Oh yes, the vermin laughed at how furious Potter had been. It seems his 'allowance' had been 25,000 galleons per year once he had graduated from Hogwarts, and it would remain so until his father died and he gained the Lordship. He told our Lord that Potter had been bragging that he would be funding the Order but now he had nothing but his rather generous allowance and his Auror's salary to live on."

"But the best part was that Dumbledore had talked him out of the 25,000 galleon. It was to be paid in quarterly installments and the first installment James received was given directly over to Dumbledore as were the rest until James' death. He actually had to live on his Auror's salary and it put a severe cramp in his lifestyle. Even Snape laughed long and loud after hearing that."

Finally Skull Cleaver could stand no more of the gossiping of the wizards. The boy would need to know some of these interesting tales but that could be done at another time and place. They kept jumping from one subject to another and were just wasting time in his opinion. He had to call their attention to the time restraints.

In _Gobbledygook_ Skull Cleaver told Ironclaw enough was enough and then interrupted the wizards.

"You can speak to Lord Black at a later time but now we must move quickly unless you wish to return to your cells in Azkaban. DON'T INTERRUPT LADY LESTRANGE!" he shouted. There is nothing like a very angry Goblin shouting at you and giving one of their patented "looks" to shut up even the likes of Bellatrix Black Lestrange.

"By now the guard has discovered your disappearance. Even if an investigation is done first before reporting it to the Ministry and thus Dumbledore, you probably have mere hours left to decide where to go and then leave for that destination."

"But why should we leave?" Bella asked. "They can't get in since the new Lord Black changed the wards and we have an endless supply of food so…"

"THEY, meaning Dumbledore, can't get in but they know where this house is and the moment you step out – Plugnook ( _Gobbledygook_ for you know what) – you are captured. Or, they can catch you once your food order comes in."

Skull Cleaver gave a quick explanation regarding the direct delivery and automatic charge of foodstuffs and supplies. He then went on to say that there was some food left but sooner or later Kreacher would have to place an order and the food would arrive. Then all Dumbledore had to do was wait for the _**special food-based port key to take effect**_.

Ironclaw took over the detailed explanation of the special port key. It seems such a thing was widely used by the Dark Lord Grindelwald. Few people in Britain knew about its existence due to the fact that not only was it top secret but dark magic was used to make it. It didn't work until it was ingested.

Using Harry Potter for example, a butter beer would be delivered. Kreacher would handle it and not be whisked away. He could open it, pour it into a glass or leave it in the bottle. Then the person who was most likely to drink it, in this case Harry Potter, would swallow the liquid and once it hit his stomach – whoosh – he would be instantly transported to his potential captors or more than likely a secure cell where he could not escape.

Ironclaw informed the wizards and witch that it had been used in the past few months, apparently to get back students who had "left Hogwarts without permission" and had escaped back to their homes. From what the Goblins could determine this was a "liquid portkey" and it was half spell and half potion, so it was practically undetectable like a regular portkey and could even be keyed in to a certain person.

Since Dumbledore is the prime suspect and he knows about the delivery system, since that Order of his freely utilized it, all he would have to do is wait until more supplies were ordered and at least one of you, probably Lord Black, would be portkeyed to a predetermined cell.

"Well we just won't order any butter beer," snapped Bellatrix.

"It is in other foodstuff. The Turpin girl was eating a breakfast cereal and was whisked away. From what our potion masters tell us, the potion is odorless and tasteless and can be put into anything. They were able to break down the components of the potion but not the spell used in conjunction with it."

"It seems that most of the vendors in Britain are under not only the Ministry but Dumbledore's jurisdiction. They are now reporting when house elves are buying food and drinks and even ready-made potion supplies. The 'net' is tightening and there is nothing that even we at Gringotts can do about it."

"Therefore, we believe it would be best for the three of you to leave this house for another place of safety."

He began to pass out to Harry and Bellatrix certain paperwork listing the properties Harry had inherited as Lord Black and did the same to Rabastan. "Hopefully one of these properties could be used, especially if they are under a private family ward. If you know of any others, please tell us. No doubt wards and repairs will need to be reset, supplies purchased – outside of Britain – and many other things.

The wizards and witch looked over the list and found nothing that someone didn't know about. Ironclaw informed Harry that Dumbledore already had a list of all Potter properties which apparently James had provided to him before his father's death. This brought up another warning about Dumbledore having something to do with Charlus Potter's untimely passing.

Before they started looking over the documents, Bella had ordered Kreacher to start packing up the Black library as well as assorted family heirlooms and anything worth a lot of money. He had informed her that just before his death, Orion Black had put the rarest books and dark artifacts into the hidden chamber. Only the new Lord Black could access it and Kreacher would have to show him where it was located.

Bella had to explain to Harry about the hidden chamber. This was the safest and most secure place in Grimmauld House. Only the Lord Black knew about it and only passed on the knowledge of its location to his heir. In this case, Regulus was dead and Sirius was in Azkaban, so Orion had showed Kreacher its location, swearing him to pass on the information when the next Lord Black asked for it.

An almost tearful Kreacher had remarked that Orion hated Lucius Malfoy so much, especially since he knew that Lucius knew that Sirius wasn't a Death Eater and once Lucius had been spared prison, he used all his influence to make certain that Sirius didn't get a trial. He wanted Draco to inherit the Lordship and would see the Black line end so that his son would have the title, wealth and power that the Ancient and Noble House possessed.

"So Master Orion did not change his Will and he knew that his Father would see to it that Draco Malfoy would never inherit the Lordship, and let things take its course and now a filthy Half-blood is Lord Black."

Much to the surprise of all, Bellatrix rose from her seat, grabbed the elf and slapped him hard. She then started ranting at him utilizing her extensive curse vocabulary to chastise and threaten him about true House loyalty and that even she would prefer to see Harry as Lord Black than any traitorous, line-thieving Malfoy.

Harry, Rabastan and both Goblins were shocked at her pronouncement, but apparently in her warped mind even Harry was better than Draco the Malfoy.

After going through all the properties, none met their needs. Even if a property was placed under the Fidelius, the locations were too well-known to others and the Ministry and/or Dumbledore could place lookouts in the general area. The Potter properties were definitely out of the question as Dumbledore knew where their locations were or probably were thanks to James.

The floo could not be used, vendors could not be trusted and even Kreacher going out to purchase food would eventually lead to their location. There was no choice left but to leave Britain, purchase another house and fortify it like a prison and to do it soon.

Everything belongs to JKRowling except the mad plots and the occasional character I have added. I make no money on this and just write to express my warped sense of imagination.

Chapter 5 - Recovery

They had been so very lucky that their escape hadn't been noticed for so long, but then Harry thought it was about time he actually had some good luck.

Kreacher showed him the entrance to the hidden chamber and how to claim and open it as Lord Black. There were a lot of books which Molly Weasley would have had a stroke if she had just read the titles. Dumbledore would have denounced them and no doubt personally removed them to take them off to be thoroughly and safely destroy. Yeah right!

There was a large cache of money which Kreacher said was "emergency/escape money" in case any of the Family had to flee. There was also a very interesting secret escape hatch (the Blacks must have been more paranoid than Mad Eye Moody), deep underground. It led to the Muggle sewer system and there was even a magical boat to cruise down the sewer to a place where all the wards ended and where no one would think to place anti-apparation and anti-portkey wards that far out. Even better, the boat was also a portkey which would activate once a certain point in the sewer system was reached. It was good to know.

Time had flown but the decision had been made mostly by Rabastan and the Goblins but agreed to by Harry and a reluctant Bellatrix, to leave as soon as Kreacher finished packing the Black Library. The Goblins went back to Gringotts to make arrangements for a large amount of the Black fortune to be transferred to another Gringotts branch as well as most of the contents of the Lestrange vault.

Harry had signed a withdrawal slip to take all but one galleon, one sickle and one knut out of his trust vault so that it could not be closed. They would use this money for their traveling. Since his trust vault had been frozen the moment he had been sent to Azkaban, nothing could be taken out of it but the yearly refill of 25,000 galleons had been transferred and the funds for his "upkeep" had not been removed. Now that he was free to claim it, a withdrawal in his name could be made. Therefore there was a very tidy sum available for Harry's use.

The Goblins returned with the funds and to give them a special portkey which would take them and Kreacher directly to the Gringotts Lisbon Branch. They would stay there and be given medical treatment and search for a place to live – for a reasonable fee of course - but Harry would give half his trust vault if that was what it took to escape Britain.

The British Gringotts Branch could truthfully say that Harry, Rabastan and Bellatrix Lestrange had not come to Gringotts to get money, nor had any house elf made a withdrawal. Since the accounts were "frozen" neither the Ministry nor Dumbledore could get any information from the Goblins.

Dumbledore had before and no doubt would demand to see the financial records for Harry, but the Goblins would not give them to him. It had been disproved that he hadn't been the boy's legal guardian, despite having raided the boy's trust vault for his "upkeep" and since the Goblins knew that Harry had been emancipated by participation in the Tournament and now was emancipated as Lord Black Dumbledore could legally be denied any access to Harry's finances.

Once the three were given a clean bill of health and had found a place to live, there would be another transfer to another Gringotts as well as a Muggle bank or two and the transfer records from the London and Lisbon Branches would be permanently sealed – for a reasonable fee.

And there would be nothing that the Ministry and especially Dumbledore could do about it.

The Goblins were doing all of this not because it helped out a very valuable client or even for the reasonable fees (well they wouldn't do anything for "free"). No, the main reason was they knew their time in Britain was running out. Dark Lords they could handle as well as the Ministry, snooty Purebloods, irritating Muggleborns, Muggles, and other annoying wizards and witches, but Dumbledore finally deciding to take over Britain…well that was just too much. The writing was on the wall and the penmanship disturbing.

It was only a matter of time when the Ministry, on orders and with encouragement from Dumbledore, would start trying to take over Gringotts. The Goblins had been disrupting many of the old wizard's plans "for the Greater Good" such as denying him access to the Potter vaults, exposing the fake Wills he had brought to them concerning Potter and others, misusing Hogwarts funds (at least in the Goblins' opinion), taking monetary advantage of orphans other than Harry Potter in his position as Headmaster and many other things.

Money did make the world go round. Dumbledore was getting more money from the likes of the Malfoys and others than Voldemort ever did. The cost of the Greater Good was very expensive in more ways than one, and a Goblin seer had predicted that there would be another Goblin rebellion in Britain near the millennia, one which the Goblins could not win.

So the Goblins were making alternative plans. Many Goblin families were leaving Britain and establishing homes in other countries. Some of the very old and ancient vaults without current heirs were secretly being moved to other Gringotts Branches. Some vaults could be reclaimed when the descendant of a Squibb was born with magic and got around to taking a heritage test.

It had basically been banned in Britain as many Pureblood families didn't want "competition" from a Squib showing up and making a claim or trying to revive their line. It was also very expensive and this also helped to discourage taking the test. Most people didn't know such a test even existed.

Even Hermione Granger hadn't known about the test. If she had known and convinced her parents to pay the outrageous fee that the Ministry made the Goblins charge, she would have found out that both her parents were descendants of Squibs and there were two vaults which she could claim on their behalf and her use. Or she could have gone to another Gringotts branch in another country and had the test done for a lot less money. But that was all a moot point as the existence of that test was mostly hidden.

Once Harry Potter and the Lestranges were established, the remainder of their vaults, including the Potter vaults, could leave the country. The Goblins estimated that they needed another year to be successful in saving the unclaimed vaults. They just hoped that the "great escape" (as the press would soon be calling it) didn't hamper their efforts.

Harry and the Lestranges spent two weeks at the Lisbon Branch. Harry was in the worse condition due to his years of abuse at the Dursleys. It was discovered that his poor body was loaded with charms, spells and curses even. There were very strong loyalty charms mostly directed to Dumbledore, with weaker ones directed to the Weasleys, Hermione and the Order of the Phoenix. Then there were formable hate and anger curses directed to Snape, Draco Malfoy, Slytherin House and certain other students.

There were spells placed on him to make him lazy, confuse his mind (which explained why he had trouble studying since he went to Hogwarts), to be reckless, short-tempered and depressed. There were mild compulsion charms to make him not try to make friends because after all who would really want to be friends with him?

After the loyalty charms directed to Dumbledore, the very worse curse on him was the guilt. He could not help but to feeling guilty about things and that it really was "all his fault" which probably explained why he hadn't exposed the Dursleys for what they really were. But then again, no one would have believed him. Not the neighbors in Surrey, not the officials and teachers at his primary school, definitely nobody at Hogwarts. Even Dumbledore had always told him to his face that he was exaggerating, having some teenage rebellion or whatever lame excuse the old wizard was giving out that week.

What had hurt the worse was that Sirius, Remus and Hermione agreed with Dumbledore. That had hurt the most and now he would never know if they had been spelled or just took everything Dumbledore said as gospel.

It ended up that Harry had to have most of his bones (especially in his hands, feet and ribs) vanished and regrown due to his childhood injuries which he had self-healed most of which had healed but not completely. At least that explained his bad handwriting and the constant pain he felt when the weather was bad.

He was put on a strict diet and regimen of healthy eating and nutritional potions, the latter of which he would have to take for at least a year. It might help him grow a few inches which would be nice and it would help his eyesight improve.

The most interesting thing was the glamour which the Goblins found had been in place probably since his birth. After his bones were seen to, the glamour could be removed and, surprise, surprise – he wasn't a spitting image of James Potter.

Rabastan had pointed out to Harry before the glamour was removed that without his glasses on and if he had a decent haircut, he wasn't a Potter clone. The messy hair and ugly glasses was all James and if you were expecting to see a clone of James Potter, with those two prominent characteristics so evident, then a clone of James Potter you would see and not look beyond them.

With the glamour removed, his hair had actually been tamed and combed out into a neat, slightly wavy head of thick, black hair. James had had black hair, but now Harry had ebony black, much like Bella's tresses. His cheek bones changed slightly and his eyesight improved greatly and much sooner than expected. Harry still wore glasses, but the prescription was weak and he could actually see decently without wearing them. The Goblin healer opined that once he finished his course of nutrition potions and developed a healthier eating pattern, he probably wouldn't even need the new prescription.

But the biggest and most notable change was his eyes. Oh they were still a killing curse green just like Lily Evans' eyes had been (at least according to Rabastan who admitted to looking deep into the girl's eyes once or twice while at Hogwarts because…well she was a very pretty girl), but now they had a shade of blue mixed in. He had teal-colored eyes and even Bellatrix had to admit that the shade was rare and rather…enticing.

Harry had blushed and Rabastan had laughed but the boy's eyes were unique and downright beautiful even more so than they had been before.

Rabastan and Bella had to also have extensive work done due to the years they had endured in Azkaban before being liberated by Voldemort. They had been "healed" enough to fight for Voldemort but were still taking potions and had not had the time to completely recover from their ordeal. Rudolphus had probably succumbed to his illness due to not being truly recovered and pushing himself too hard hoping to please his Lord and his wife. The past months they had spent in Azkaban totally disrupted their recovery so they still had a long way to go recuperating.

Interestingly, Bellatrix also had a few charms placed on her. Strangely from the length of time they had been on her the charms were probably placed sometime during her Hogwarts years. They were extensive loyalty charms probably to her family as they had been on so long it was impossible to tell who they were directed to, which also indicated the person or persons who had them cast were probably dead.

Bella informed Harry that this was a common occurrence when families thought that a child might rebel against the Family's wishes such as marrying the wizard they had chosen for their daughter. It could also explain the utter hatred and mad obsession she had against Muggles and Mudbloods.

"I would never admit this to anybody," she told Harry and Rabastan, "But I actually liked, or at least respected the odd Mudblood or two when in school. I even thought that %#$*&^#$ Ted Tonks was quite amusing…until my sister ran off with him."

"And you really did loath Rudolphus – everyone knew that," added Rabastan. "You didn't want to marry him and even said, and I quote, "'Even that pansy pants Lucius Malfoy would be better than Dolph the Dunderhead – and he's four years younger than me.' Personally I think your parents spelled you to marry Rudolphus because you were threatening to swear on your life and magic that you wouldn't but then you married him."

"I don't remember that!"

"Well I do, but then the next thing you know you got engaged and you went through the marriage without that much fuss. You hexed him after your wedding night and a few times thereafter, but you married him."

A rather loud argument had broken out between the two much to Harry's amusement.

While they were being treated the dragon dung finally hit the fan. The escape was at last noticed by Amelia Bones and all hell broke loose. The Goblins could indeed swear (and via some Ministry stooges Dumbledore had seen to it) that none of the three had come to Gringotts to get money. The Goblins did promise that if they showed up at the bank, they would hold them and alert the Ministry immediately. Bill Weasley had confirmed this to Dumbledore and for all intents and purposes it looked as if the fugitives had fled Azkaban for parts unknown.

Just to make certain, Dumbledore had at least one Order member, and sometimes two, constantly watching Grimmauld Place. There were automatic portkeys placed on the front door of the house. They couldn't get in but if someone was trying to sneak out they would be caught. As the Goblins had predicted, "special" butter beers, milk, packaged biscuits and treacle syrup (used in the making of treacle tarts) were given to the vendors catering to the Black account.

Therefore, it was just a matter of time before the boy was caught. Dumbledore really didn't care about the Lestranges, but if and when they were apprehended they were to be killed immediately either by receiving the kiss or being thrown through the Veil. No excuses, no reprieves, no trial, nothing but instant death as soon as possible or at least after they were administered Veritaserum first to see if they knew what happened to Potter.

The British Magical and European Magical press were alerted. All Magical governments and the British Muggle governments were contacted and just like Sirius' Black's escape, the faces of Harry Potter and the two Lestranges were plastered all over. The Dursleys were horrified and embarrassed but Dumbledore didn't care as all he wanted was Potter apprehended and once again in his power.

Bellatrix was at first embarrassed and then furious when she saw the picture they used. It was not her best but then all those years in Azkaban didn't help. She was furious when she was told by the Goblins that they had taken a picture of her before her incarceration and did something called photo shopping. Harry explained to her what it was and that apparently they used it to age and "ugly her up" for the picture.

The only thing she could do about it was to throw a huge temper tantrum, rip it to shreds, magically fix it and then destroy it again. It gave her something to do but she was still pissed.

Harry came up with an idea to calm her down. To further change his appearance, he had decided to have Muggle plastic surgery done to get rid of his lightning bolt scar, and the scars from the basilisk bite and the "incident at the cemetery" as he called Voldie's resurrection. He advised Bella to have some work "done" not only to change her appearance but to restore, "the great beauty you sacrificed in service to your Lord."

Magic could not fix "curse scars" and Bella would either have to use extensive glamours to repair her looks or delve into very dark rites to fix things. She wouldn't have minded using dark rites (it would make her feel closer to her Lord), but they didn't have access to any books containing such rites and the Goblins wouldn't provide them with any.

Therefore, after the first two weeks at the Lisbon Gringotts, a small apartment was rented nearby so that they could get the surgery, be fitted for new wands and clothes and take care of a few other odds and ends.

Harry had the surgery first. A Muggle plastic surgeon who had done other work for the Goblins (he had a magical brother so knew of the Magical World) was brought to the bank to perform "his magic" on Harry. The scars were removed and healed nicely.

Other scars which he had compliments of the Dursleys had been magically removed and that, coupled with the removal of the glamour, the potions and good diet, sufficient sleep, physical therapy and the lack of "adventures" (compliments of Dumbledore) had improved the boy's general health and definitely his appearance. Once he didn't need the glasses and had gained a bit more weight and health there was a good possibility that not even Hermione would recognize him.

Bella was still debating but Rabastan had already made up his mind. He was having the Muggle surgery done to change his facial appearance as well as getting rid of a few curse scars earned in fights with the Aurors which could possibly lead to him being identified.

The surgeon had shown him something called "computer images" which showed the possible changes which could be done and he could actually design his new face. His surgery was a success. He now resembled an Australian movie actor named Mel Gibson. He wasn't an exact replica of the Muggle but "close enough for government work" as Harry said. Rabastan still had his black hair, light blue eyes and bone structure.

Even Bella had to admit that her brother-in-law looked rather nice but "Anything would be an improvement considering your real looks."

It had convinced her to have the surgery. She had been a very beautiful woman but Azkaban, practicing very dark magic and the life she had led had left her a shell of her former self. And she was over forty a time which even a witch starts to lose some looks.

The only problem was to pick a new face. She looked through the computer (and decided she really like the thing despite it being a filthy Muggle object), went through stacks of magazines and even ventured out heavily disguised to "shop" for faces. Then she had a wonderful idea.

She was going to look the female equivalent of the new Harry Potter!

And why not as it would probably even fool Dumbledore.

They had been making plans and had come up with the perfect escape. They would be acting as a family. Both Bella and Rabastan were old enough to be Harry's parents (Bella more so than Rabastan but let's not dwell on that fact). Bella did have the ebony black like Harry and she had violet eyes which she could glamour or wear something called contact lenses to change the color to be more like Harry's shade.

Along with the surgery she was going to have what they called a "make-over" which would take care of her hair and makeup. She was going for a softer look and would be starting out by getting a very short haircut. She had been told by a Muggle hairstylist that her hair was very badly damaged. She told the woman she had been sick for a very long time and on strong medication.

The woman had suggested that she get a very short cut and then start a round of special hair treatments. Since she was not "off the bad meds and a lot better physically" by the time they treatments were done her hair should be able to grow in nicely and get back its former glory. Bella would do that all right but she would be using special magical potions and not subject herself to the very expensive Muggle treatments. She settled for the short cut and some of the products until she could buy or brew the correct potions.

After all the healing and surgeries were done, the trio would be leaving Lisbon and heading out to the Muggle world. It had been suggested by the Goblins that they find their own house in the Muggle World until they decided what they were going to do with the rest of their lives. The Goblins could truthfully swear if asked by any authorities that they didn't know where they were.

Naturally the Lestranges were against this type of plan but since it was Harry's money they were using, he got to call the shots. If they chose not to go along with it, then _**they could use their money**_ and go off immediately to find their Lord or whatever.

Since Bella, and if he admitted it, Rabastan, were fascinated by the computer, the television and Muggle movies, they would need a Muggle home to continue their research in such items. Harry would be instructing them in how to live like a Muggle since "Since you are always saying that your Lord considered knowledge power, then you should get as much knowledge as possible. Besides NOBODY would believe you two would live as Muggles."

That was totally true, so for at least six months to a year, they would live as Muggles. The Goblin healers estimated it would take that long for all three of them to truly recover their health (although for Harry it would be much longer), learn a few things and then make their "final decision" as to what they wanted to do.

That being decided the next big discussion (or fight) was the names they were to take. The Goblins didn't want to know. They would get them all the documents they needed to live in the Muggle world and all they would have to do was to fill in their names at the last minute. This would again protect not only the Goblins from prosecution but further hide the trio.

The Goblins strongly suggested that they chose names that had nothing to do with their former lives. Therefore, there should be no James Black, Isabelle Strange or the like. Definitely not any constellation names for which the Black Family was famous for or first names beginning with the letters "H" or "R" or even "B" as that could be a giveaway.

Naturally Bella couldn't decide on a name – at least one she liked. Rabastan was told that he definitely could not call himself Mel or Gibson, especially with his new looks. First names were bad enough but choosing a last name – pure horror.

Since this decision was being made during the time when the trio was taking computer courses, Harry searched for and found a list of names on the Internet, printed out the names, then cut them up and placed them in two hats (yes a hat) – one for females and one for males.

"Okay, we each get to pick two names out of our respective hats for first and middle names. What we pick we get. Understood?"

They picked. Then the yelling and fighting started.

Bella picked Hillary and Laura. She hated them both.

Rabastan got Herbert and (shudder) Vernon. Enough said about that.

Harry ended up with Brian (which was definitely out because that was one of Dumble's middle names) and Malcolm (one of Dudley's gang who played Harry Hunting).

Tossing those names out, they picked again.

Bella got Merilee and Barbara.

Rabastan got Roland and Sterling.

Harry was the recipient of Arthur (couldn't use that as that was Mr. W's name) and Wilbur (no way).

So they chose again.

Bella got Teresa, which sounded like a saint's name and Martha, which Bella definitely knew was a saint's name, and although Bella was many things to many people, a saint wasn't one of them.

Rabastan wanted to cry when he got Stanley and Eugene (some god must hate him).

Harry did cry when he got Arnold and Ronald!

So they picked again. And again. And again until they started running out of names. Well actually they weren't running out of name just (hopefully) names that they hated or considered weird.

Harry wanted to scream when he ended up with Norman and Cornelius (ugh Fudge).

Rabastan snarled when he picked Oscar and Clarence.

Bella merely screamed and refused to even read the names out loud but merely started ripping the two tiny pieces of paper apart as many times as she could.

"They couldn't be that bad," Harry said.

Bella simply glared at him before saying "Ida and Minerva."

"Oh."

"The next set we take," snapped an angry Rabastan. "I am fed up and we just have to do it. I also want to know where the computer came up with these names?"

"They were the most popular names for each decade of the 20th Century. I thought that would be safe."

"Well WE HAVE TO have gone through all the stupid names by now," yelled Bella. "Nothing could be worse than the ones I got so they must be out of all the Maudes and Flossies by now."

"So it's agreed – the next ones are it no matter what," asked Rabastan.

"I won't swear on my life and magic, but yes, we let fate decide our names."

They all agreed and began to _**carefully**_ pick their future names. Bella mixed the papers in her hat for a good ten seconds as did Rabastan and Harry. Then they picked.

Bella got Maizie and Alberta, Rabastan got Marion and Heathcliff and Harry, poor Harry, got Percy and Sylvester. They looked at each other, sighed heavily and then Bella whipped out her wand and set both hats on fire. They then snuck out and went to a bar and drank a lot of wine before staggering back to their quarters.

The next day Harry got the bright idea of making up another set of names but instead of using the entire century, he made one hat up for the most popular male names and one hat for female names in the 1950's, since that was when the Lestranges were born, and one hat for males names in the 1980's. It sounded like a fine idea.

The three hats were given to their respective person and a drawing was made. It would be a one-time drawing.

Bella got Brenda and Ruth. Hmmm. Brenda Ruth. She liked Ruth (because it could be short for ruthless with she most certainly was), and many people went by their middle names. She would do it that way. Brenda Ruth So and So, known as Ruth. Definitely!

Rabastan got Matthew and Steven. "I'll take it but it will be as Steven Matthew."

So far things had gone very well so Harry figured he'd take whatever he got. He was drawing from popular names from the 1980's so they were pretty good, right?"

Geoffrey Thomas.

"There is nothing wrong with those names," said Bella. "In fact, I quite like them."

"So do I," added Rabastan.

"WELL I HATE THE NAME THOMAS!"

"Why?"

"I just do. How about I just keep Geoffrey and not have a middle name?"

"Why do you hate the name Thomas," cooed Bella. "Who do you know named Thomas? Granted, it sounds like a Muggle name, but it isn't that bad. I like it."

"Well I don't."

"I like it too," Rabastan replied just to annoy Harry.

"Then it is settled. Unless you have an extremely good reason – and you can't lie about the reason – then tell us why you hate that name."

Bella was very curious and Rabastan was backing her up so Harry was trapped. If he told them that was Voldie's real name (or at least Tom, the nickname for Thomas), would they make him take it because it was Voldie's name? Bella said it sounded like a Muggle name and then he could tell them that their favorite Dark Lord had a Muggle father, making him a Half-blood, who was named Tom. That might start a real fight and since they had all been getting along so well and they were, he hated to admit it, all he really had left in the world, well…was it really worth fighting over a name?"

"Okay, okay, Geoffrey Thomas it is. But call me Geoff."

"Well that is settled so all we have to do now is decide on a last name."

UUUGGGHHHHH!

They put it off until the day they HAD TO HAVE ONE.

This time Harry got the bright idea to put in the hat the last names of politicians. He used the names of the American Presidents and the British Prime Ministers of the last two centuries. He mixed the names up and the plan was for each of them to pick a name and then they would discuss which of the three names they would use. Sounded like a plan, right?

And the winners were: Franklin Pierce, Rutherford B. Hayes and Winston Churchill.

Bella liked the name Rutherford. Rabastan preferred Pierce, or as he explained to Bella "You always liked to _**pierce**_ bodies with some of your curses." Harry was leaning towards Winston as that could be used as a last name.

The requisite fight began. After hearing the pros and cons for about an hour, the names Rutherford, Pierce, Winston and Franklin were put on a separate piece of paper, dropped into the hat and the winner was: Franklin.

Bella said absolutely, positively not because _Franklin_ was the full name of Frank Longbottom. This was how Harry found out the _real reason_ Bella had tortured the Longbottoms into insanity.

Back in Azkaban Rabastan had let in slip that Bella had suffered a miscarriage and had never conceived again after the loss. The reason Bella had had the miscarriage was that she had been shopping in Diagon Alley with Narcissa. Bella was six months pregnant and doing very well. She loved being pregnant and although Rudolphus had been marked, she served like all the good Death Eaters wives did and after she birthed this child and then hopefully another, she had every intention of becoming active in the raids and the fighting. The Dark Lord rarely marked a woman but had made it known that he would make an exception for a truly dedicated female but not until she had birthed at least two heirs "for the cause."

But on that beautiful day when she was shopping with Narcissa, helping her to pick out new robes for the upcoming winter holiday season, tragedy struck. There was an incident. It had not been planned, but five Slytherin seventh years had gone to Diagon Alley to hang out, as boys did. They ran into some sixth and seventh year Gryffindors.

Bella and Narcissa had just left the robe shop and were doing a bit of window shopping when the fight started. At first it was just verbal insults, then curses and hexes started flying. They weren't lethal spells, just heavy stingers, a few mild cutting hexes, the usual things the students of Hogwarts used against each other.

Bella had just started to push Narcissa towards a shop door to avoid the melee but then the voice of their cousin Sirius was heard. James Potter joined in and they started viciously taunting the Slytherins. Things started to escalate and the next thing one knew the curses and hexes started getting horrific. Sirius and James had managed to turn some mischief into a full scale duel. The rest of the Gryffindors went to their aid and the Slytherins retaliated in kind.

Bella made the mistake of pausing at the door wondering whether she should cast a stinging curse at her stupid, foolish, blood traitor of a cousin. It would serve him right as he was once again embarrassing the Family.

She never noticed Frank Longbottom dueling one of the Slytherins until they were almost next to her. The Slytherin cast a cutting curse at Frank who dodged it and then started casting a series of curses of his own. The Slytherin had no chance to dodge as he ran into Bella and lost his maneuverability. He started to put up a shield not only to protect himself but the witch he recognized as Lady Lestrange who was heavily pregnant and standing next to him. It would have worked but someone hit him with a bad stinging hex from behind just as he was forming the shield. The shield failed and he started falling. It was then that Frank Longbottom's chain of curses missed the Slytherin and hit Bella dead on.

She had been hit with several nasty stingers and stunners and the force pushed her into the shop's window. She fell through the window and quickly passed out. When she regained consciousness it was two days later and she was at St. Mungo's in intensive care. She had lost her baby girl and the healers had the sad duty to tell her that her chances of conceiving again were slim to none.

It was Frank Longbottom's fault. She also blamed Sirius and James, especially since Narcissa thought she saw Sirius casting the spell on the Slytherin who was trying to protect her. Didn't he notice that a heavily pregnant woman was standing behind that Slytherin? Maybe he had and didn't care if his "Death Eater" cousin was hurt. As usual he had just been focused on hurting a Slytherin…and perhaps his cousin?

Naturally Rudolphus tried to have Longbottom, Potter and Sirius punished, but it was ruled as an unfortunate accident. Dumbledore, in his position as Head of the Wizengamot, opined that if anyone was at fault, it had been the five Slytherins "who had started the fight and were using unacceptable spells and curses." As usual, James Potter and Sirius had wiggled their way out of it thanks to Dumbledore. They were untouchable at Hogwarts and in the courts courtesy of Charlus Potter.

Try as they might, the Lestranges could never get Potter or Sirius alone to wreck vengeance on. Longbottom graduated that year and immediately went into Auror training. He had been the only one to try and apologize to Bella, but she wouldn't see him. It had been his curses which killed her child and ruined her chance for motherhood and that was all that matter. No mere words could rectify what had happened.

The Dark Lord marked her as soon as she was well enough. He would let her get her revenge on those blood traitors and she became his most loyal and ruthless follower. She went after the Longbottoms using the excuse that she was looking for their Lord, but in reality she realized this would be her only chance for revenge. She had wanted to torture the Longbottom heir in front of his parents but he had been hidden by a faithful house elf who had snuck him out of the house and alerted the Aurors. She didn't get the boy but Frank and his milky-faced wife….well what she had done to them was worse than death.

It hadn't brought her baby back to life or given her the ability to have another child, but she was still thankful she had gotten some revenge.

"And that is why we are not going to be called the Franklins!"

Bella left the room as Harry sat there in shock. Rabastan wrote in a name, left the room and gave the information to the Goblins. They needed to complete the paperwork because the three were leaving tomorrow. There was no time left to waste in fighting or remembering. Their new lives started in less than 12 hours and they had to be ready.

Chapter 5 - New Home/New Lives

Hermione Granger was going back to Hogwarts for the last time. It was her seventh year and she had not been made Head Girl. She was still a Prefect, but Padma Patil had been made the Head Girl.

She was heartbroken. She had worked so hard, was top of her class five out of six years, had done everything right, followed every order the Headmaster had given her, and had put up with so much over the years, but it had been all for nothing. There had been no explanation given, just a note written in the letter listing the books for seventh year.

Mercifully Ron Weasley had not been made Head Boy. She didn't think she could go on if he had been given the office which he had been bragging he was getting. Blaize Zabini had been given the position. At least it hadn't been Malfoy.

Padma and Zabini deserved the positions and she could not find fault with the two of them having the honor. She wished them well and would do everything she could to help them.

But it should have been her and it wasn't.

She had even written a letter to Professor McGonagall asking her why. She had not received an answer. She had written a second letter to her Head of House after receiving a nasty, blistering letter from Ron Weasley blaming her for him not making Head Boy. She had made a Muggle photocopy of the letter and enclosed it in the second letter to McGonagall but she still did not get a reply.

She was frightened because in his letter Ron had hinted that _since it was her fault_ , he would be getting revenge. He had also warned that she would be really, really sorry if he didn't pass his NEWTs with excellent marks. Two weeks before their return to school, he had written another letter outlining in great detail just how things were going to be in their last year.

Her father had been furious after reading that letter and he sent a letter to McGonagall enclosing a photocopy of both letters that bastard had sent to his daughter and informing McGonagall that Hermione would not be returning for her final year. Instead she would be staying home and doing private study. She was of legal age and could practice magic. She would even hire a tutor if necessary and then she would take her NEWTs at the Ministry.

They had checked into this the prior year when Hermione had been experiencing trouble. Since Harry Potter had been sent to Azkaban, Hermione had found herself virtually friendless. Ron mostly ignored her except when he collected "his homework" which the Headmaster had ordered her to do for Ron. Hermione hadn't wanted to do all of his work, but she did. She knew she had been spelled into doing it, but was helpless and could not resist.

She also had to make exact but "easy to understand" copies of all of her notes so that Ron could read through them just before a test. Even doing all of his homework and giving him notes, he was only doing average. This was their NEWT year and the stress would be unbearable without Ron hovering over her making demands. But after receiving the two letters and his threats, she was panicking.

Unfortunately, her parents received a visit from Professor Snape. He was acting on behalf of the Headmaster who naturally was too busy to settle minor disputes. Snape informed Hermione and her parents that private study and direct testing at the Ministry had been discontinued and "Ms. Granger will return to school for her final year or will suffer….serious consequences."

Snape never specified the consequences and refused to explain further when her father demanded a full explanation. Snape merely glared at her father, informed him he did not have to explain anything to Muggles and, probably noticing her father about to lose his temper, Snape stunned him. He then turned to Mrs. Granger, rattled off some instructions, issued a few more warnings about the consequences and then said "Ms. Granger will be attending Hogwarts" then apparated away.

She had gotten on the train, her shrunken trunk in her pocket. She had left her beloved Crookshanks home because he had been seriously "pranked" last year. Twice she had to take him to Hagrid to be healed. The cat was her only friend at school and although she would miss him terribly, she would not risk his health and life. She had a good idea that Ron had been the one to injure the cat and after receiving those letters…. Well she wouldn't risk it.

She arrived early and secured her seat in the Prefect carriage hoping that Padma and Blaize would also be early. She had to tell them about the threats Ron had sent. Padma did arrive next and before Hermione could start talking, the girl held up her hand and said, "McGonagall sent me and probably Blaize a copy of those letters. She asked if we would watch out for you and I will, but I don't know what I can do as you are in a different house and I can't have you follow me around all day and definitely you are on your own at night."

It was then that Hermione broke down crying. Padma locked the door and disillusioned it so that she could comfort the girl. She had never particularly liked Granger, nobody but Potter and perhaps Longbottom really had. The whole school knew that Ron Weasley only used her and tolerated her because of Potter. He had slandered and abused both Granger and Potter behind their backs, and had been openly and publically cruel to the girl throughout the years.

Since Potter had been imprisoned and Longbottom had left after fifth year, Granger had no one. Dumbledore had used then abandoned the girl and everybody knew that also. People felt pity for Granger and even Malfoy, for some unexplained reason, had stopped harassing her.

But after Potter had been imprisoned EVERYTHING HAD CHANGED. Hogwarts was a prison and Dumbledore had taken over Magical Britain. It was openly or "official" but it was a well-known fact that you either agreed with him on everything and followed all of his policies to the letter or you became his enemy, and he was the last person you wanted for an enemy.

Even Voldemort had not been so ruthless. He was dark but he admitted it, he had had a certain agenda and used certain methods, but did it all openly. He never hid his point of view.

Dumbledore smiled, his eye twinkled unnaturally and he was proclaimed by one and all to be the Leader of the Light. His public persona was known by all and all knew that EVERYTHING HE DID HE DID FOR THE BETTERMENT OF THE MAGICAL WORLD. Anyone who said or thought differently was dark and evil.

But Dumbledore would give them a chance to change, to see the way, the way of Dumbledore. His way was the good way, the one true and noble way, the only one that was now acceptable in Magical Britain. Many people had followed him through the years, some even followed blindly, but ever since Potter's imprisonment, the many people were forced to become all of the people.

It had been shortly after the last school year started when the oaths became mandatory. Once again it wasn't official it was "voluntary." But it was Dumbledore's definition of voluntary which meant take the oath, become his devoted follower, obey his rules, follow his path or….suffer the consequences.

People were starting to flee the country, if they could. It was rumored that all former Death Eaters who hadn't been executed or sent to Azkaban - after Potter had been imprisoned – had been the first to be forced to swear allegiance to Dumbledore as part of their "reformation" and to avoid prison or death. Then it had been the neutral people who were being led to "the correct path" as it was being called.

Last year no student was allowed to leave the school for any reason, not even a death in the family. By general consensus, no student left the school for any of the holidays. Hogsmeade weekends were cancelled due to "rogue Death Eaters being at large" but everybody knew that wasn't the reason. Dumbledore wanted certain people to stop being stubborn and "follow his path" which meant taking the oath. Students could not leave the school until their parents took the oath.

The summer holidays had started yet many students were still at the school taking "special courses" or some such nonsense. The only students who had been allowed to leave the school for the summer holidays were the ones whose parents had taken the oath. The seventh year students couldn't graduate and thus leave the school until _**they took the oath**_.

It was horrible, frightening and no one could escape. Padma's father had taken the oath to save his daughters. They got to go home. After they graduated, the Patils were returning to India. They were going to be _**allowed to leave the country**_ since they had taken the oath and therefore when Dumbledore gave them a "task" to do back in India, they would have no alternative but to obey whatever orders Dumbledore gave them, without question, without deviation without rebellion of any sort.

The oath was worse than the dark mark. With the dark mark you had some leeway and Voldemort didn't try to completely control those marked or their families. There was always an escape clause for your family if things got too bad. You might suffer, be tortured or killed, but your family would be safe and mainly untraceable.

Draco Malfoy had explained it to Padma once. Had the Dark Lord lived, he would probably have had to take the mark as his father had "promised him" to the Dark Lord's service. His father had promised but not "sworn" an oath on his life and magic liked he had been forced to do by Dumbledore, so it would be possible for Draco to not be marked and make his escape with enough of his fortune to start over somewhere else, preferably far from the Dark Lord's reach. His father would suffer in some way, but at least his son and the Malfoy line would be safe.

It would be the same for the others children of Death Eaters. It all depended on how much your father…loved you, how much he wanted his child(ren) to survive, alive and free. For the neutral families they too had the same options as they had had in the first war. They could try to remain neutral and, failing that, flee the country with the family, money and lives. Many had done that.

Then there were those who "acted like they remained neutral" but instead went unmarked but assisted the Dark Lord with money, providing information, spying and recruitment. They walked a dangerous path, but survived without publically having to take a side. They were mostly average Magicals who would go either way. If they were Pureblood and couldn't be of any real use politically or monetarily, their blood status saved them IF they did not openly defy the Dark Lord.

After all, pure blood was rare and valuable. Even a blood traitor could be redeemed once the Dark Lord won. Few would risk death over the fate of a few Muggles or Mudbloods or the crazed ideology of a deranged wizard like Dumbledore.

You were only at risk if you were a Pureblood who clearly fought against the Dark Lord, took a public stand and denounced him. Usually such people were avid followers of Dumbledore, and were mostly young, bigmouth fools like James Potter and Sirius Black. Others were openly recruited while still at Hogwarts. The others were made up of Half-bloods, Mudbloods and rift raft such as the Weasleys or Prewetts, Purebloods who had come down in the world and didn't know what was good for them.

Padma had been surprised to learn from Draco the real reasons the war had started. The Dark Lord and others hadn't liked the changes which Dumbledore had been pushing through the Wizengamot. He was forcing his opinions down the throats of Britain. He had gathered a large following since he had _**saved them all from the tyranny of Grindelwald**_. His star had risen and although he didn't actively seek to become a politician or have a job at the Ministry, he was slowly pushing his views and values into the forefront. He liked being the Headmaster of Hogwarts so "he could influence and "properly educate" the children of Britain.

But once he had been awarded a seat on the Wizengamot due to acquiring his Order of Merlin, he started gaining power – a lot of real power – without most people noticing. By the early seventies, he was Head of the Wizengamot as well as the ICW. But he didn't claim to be political as he was merely and mainly the Headmaster of a school who had "a few other responsibilities."

He was changing things which displeased, insulted and worried a great many people, especially the Purebloods. It was said that before he became the Dark Lord, Voldemort had tried to enter politics but his aspirations had been silently crushed by Dumbledore as had the potential careers of several others. Laws were passed despite the mumblings of discontent, but Dumbledore paid no attention to anything. He had his goals and was chipping away at the very foundation of the culture, religion, customs and realities of Magic with few trying to stop him.

Voldemort did. Dumbledore declared the man dark and evil. Dumbledore had his followers, minions and pawns and a foothold in the Ministry. Voldemort and others realized that his foothold was on the neck of Magic and Magical Britain. The ancient rights of their ancestors were being cast aside. Traditions and values were being declared as worthless, evil, and destructive and now nonsense and filth was being taught at Hogwarts instead of their sacred learning.

That was how the war really started. Draco said that the Dark Lord originally started marking his followers for communication purposes. The mark at first resembled the temporary mark which an apprentice is given by his/her master. Once they are done with their apprenticeship, the mark is removed. It was merely the snake part of the current dark mark.

Then as the war escalated, traitors in the ranks were discovered, and slanderous propaganda circulated. The true goals and ideals of the Death Eaters were being twisted as lies were being told about what happened at the meetings.

"According to my father," Draco had said, "The meetings had become revels at which atrocities were committed, mostly on Muggles and Muggleborns. Father admitted that originally there had been a lot of Muggle-baiting done at the initiations. The young recruits had to be shown just how inferior Muggles really were and at times they were used as target practice. You had to do some torture to a Muggle or two as part of the initiation, but nothing that killed them just hurt them a bit and then they were obliviated and dropped off someplace. He said that Muggle university students do similar things with their fraternity initiations – whatever they are."

But Draco had also said that shortly after his father had graduated from Hogwarts a change had come over the Dark Lord. No one knew exactly what happened, but it was gradual. Some said he had increased his practicing of dark rites and some of them hadn't been turned out right. In any event, his personality and even his looks started changing. Then one or two of his most faithful followers turned on him and nearly killed him. They were caught and then executed in the most painful ways possible."

"After that our Lord seemed to lose his mind little by little. He accepted as recruits some rather vile and sadist trash who he wouldn't have even looked at before. He even accepted a few mercenaries, and naturally they didn't work for free. They also were, as my father said, too eager to hurt people. The next thing father knew was that our recruits were getting worse. A lot of sadists were joining up. They did things on raids which got the movement a very bad reputation. Things got out of control and the killings started. Then there were the rapes and mutilations, usually of Muggles and Mudbloods."

"Now my father swears that he never indulged in such actions as he would never stoop so low as to have sex with a filthy Muggle or even a Mudblood. However, many of the new filth did and the rumors started that was part of the initiation rite. Father said things just got out of hand after that. Sometimes the Dark Lord would stop the madness and sometimes he wouldn't. He seemed to waiver between continuing with the original goals and methods of the movement, but then at other times, he would just sit there and allow it to happen. He never joined in the revels and usually left the meeting once they started."

What had brought on this revelation by Draco to Padma was a very disturbing incident towards the end of the year. The children of "those who mattered" were being held hostage until their parents "saw the light" and swore the Oath of the Light as Dumbledore had begun calling it. Some parents considered Light or even Neutral, thought this was outrageous and demanded that their children be allowed to come home for the holidays. Dumbledore refused informing the parents that it was their children's own wish to stay at the school until their parents SAW THE LIGHT.

Even though Hogwarts was in lockdown, it was not entirely possible to sneak out if one knew how. Once the child "snuck out" they would return home, be free of Dumbledore's manipulations and be sent to another school in another country. Many people were already mumbling about how things were and how they were leaving their homeland.

Five children had snuck out and had returned to their homes. The parents sent an official letter addressed to the school saying they were being withdrawn as their families was moving overseas. A copy of the letter was sent to the Ministry and it was thought that was the end of things. Two families had already left the country. Then it happened.

The two children belonging to the family who had not left yet were taken away by the Ministry. No reason was given other than "once started all children had to finish their education at Hogwarts – it is the law of the land." The parents were arrested for breaking the law. This was a new law just passed by the Wizengamot two months before and not made known to the general public.

The other two families who had managed to leave had been contacted by the governments of their new home and were told their children had to go back to Hogwarts to complete their education. The risk of an international incident was in the making if the children did not comply with the law.

Both set of parents refused, acquired a lawyer and fought the demanded extradition. Their new governments were sympathetic to the parents as it was becoming quite clear that Dumbledore was acting in a peculiar way – or at least more peculiar than he usually acted.

Therefore, the governments were not going to get involved. They considered their duty done once the "message" had been delivered. They were wrong.

Somehow the three children had been mysteriously portkeyed away returning directly to Hogwarts to complete the remainder of their education. The parents were informed that their children WOULD BE COMPLETING THEIR HOGWARTS EDUCATION. Due to the parents willfully breaking the law of the land, until such time the children graduated from Hogwarts, they would not be allowed to leave the school, nor would the parents be allowed to contact them. The parents were still responsible for paying their children's school fees and a lawsuit would now be filed to collect these fees – in advance.

"No my dear Padma," Draco had drawled, "things have definitely changed and will never be the same while Dumbledore lives and even after that time."

"What do you mean?"

"Didn't your father tell you the contents of the oath he had to swear to spring you and your sister?"

"No. All he would say is that he would die before we took that oath."

"Well it looks as if your mother will be a widow by the time you graduate, because he is obliged to conform to ANY AND ALL conditions of the oath and the failure to do so will result in his death. You see not only does he have to adhere to the oath he has sworn to see that his family will become a devoted follower of the Light or his life will be forfeit. Once you graduate you will be obligated to take the oath and if you refuse, your father must make you or suffer the loss of his life."

Padma had not wanted to believe Malfoy but when she asked her father he told her it was true. The only hope he had was that their mother hadn't been forced to take the oath and if he had to he would divorce their mother. The Twins' mother was in complete agreement with this action as while her husband had taken the fealty oath to Dumbledore (which it was in reality) to allow their girls to leave the school, he had to agree to other things against his will.

Apparently, the "Ministry" had passed severe laws prohibiting anybody from leaving Britain, as so many people were doing just that to escape conforming to Dumbledore's Greater Good agenda. Mr. Patil was "allowed" by Dumbledore to leave Britain to return to India, but only under certain conditions. He was to take Dumbledore's Greater Good crusade with him and become a missionary of sorts to the Asian Continent (where Dumbledore had no influence at all).

He had not wanted to do it, but it was the only way to get his wife and girls out of Britain and the safety of their homeland. As long as his girls were free, he would be happy. Besides, while he was obliged to "take the Message of the Light" to India, he had no doubt whatsoever they he would be ignored. As long as his wife and girls were safe, he would survive. He already had the permission to for them all to leave as soon as the girls passed their NEWTs.

Everything belongs to JKRowling except the mad plots and the occasional character I have added. I make no money on this and just write to express my warped sense of imagination.

Chapter 6 – The Reign of King Dumbledore

If there was one thing which Albus Dumbledore thoroughly enjoyed it was seeing the expression on a person's face when he denied them something. The more important the request and the more disappointment, fear and hopeless resignation on the face, the more Albus relished it. A very angry face was also good for an inner chuckle.

Naturally his face could show many expression from the "there-is-nothing-I-can-do" face, to the "how-could-you-ask-something-like-that" face, the famous "I-am-so-disappointed" face, wherein the person was usually standing up for his/her rights or requesting justice (or mercy) from the old wizard's decision or, more likely than not, they were fighting his orders. Sometimes that face worked to shame the person questioning his decision or order but sometimes it did not and they started arguing with him.

But in the event, NOBODY won against Albus Dumbledore. Oh they might think they had a victory _**if he let them think that**_ , but usually that was just another one of his ploys. It gave him time to re-plan if he was temporarily stymied, but in the end, HE ALWAYS WON.

No, Albus Dumbledore had always won and always would, especially now. Now he was done pretending, done with some of his more subtle manipulations. No, now he had finally reached a point in his long life where he just decided that he would start his take-over of Magical Britain – and eventually the world.

After all, he had finally succeeded in making his own Horcrux, so he was immortal and did not have to worry about mortality or hiding his real agenda.

Albus Dumbledore was the Leader of the Light. Well he was the _**self-proclaimed Leader of the Light**_ , but his propaganda machine had been saying it for so long and he had lasted for so long, that it was a given and no one would ever dream of saying he was anything but the Leader of the Light and a Light Wizard. Well Tom Riddle had, but look where that got him!

No, not even his brother Aberforth could deny it now. He had been denying it for years, ever since the death of their sister caused by the three-way duel between him, his brother and Gellert Grindelwald.

Albus was at that time a dark wizard, but had carefully hidden the fact. He and his lover Gellert were going to rule the world according to their own terms. Unfortunately his sister had been caught in the crossfire and was killed. Who had struck the fatal spell would never be known. It didn't matter because it had caused the breakup of the two idealistic wizards and Gellert left, never to return.

But Aberforth knew enough of his brother's plans to know that Albus was up to no good. Gellert wasn't the only one who left Albus that day. Albus as the Head of the House of Dumbledore forced his brother to return to Hogwarts to finish his education. However, once Aberforth graduated he demanded his share of the estate, got it and left to travel the world. He did not return until for thirty years when he returned to Britain and purchased the seediest pub in Magical Britain, located right next to Hogwarts where his brother had drifted into a teaching position.

Gellert had continue with his plans for conquest, despite Albus trying to get back into his good graces and become his partner and share in the rewards which Gellert was so close to obtaining. But Gellert had refused to even talk to Albus, despite his desperate pleadings. The reason given was that Albus had gone off to find his own glory and totally ignored Gellert until Gellert had gained the power and standing he had in the world.

Therefore, in part to revenge himself against Gellert, Albus spread the rumor that he, Albus Dumbledore was the only one Gellert feared and the only one who could defeat him. With Aberforth back Albus had to "change his brother's memories" but Aberforth had apparently been doing a lot of studying in his travel and Albus hadn't been able to trap him into being alone with him, without witnesses, as well as setting up some truly remarkable runes and warding around his pub. Albus couldn't enter the damn place and Aberforth never left the general area of the pub. He knew his brother too well.

It had taken Albus actually "defeating" Gellert and being proclaimed a hero and savior that Aberforth finally broke down and talked to his brother. He never forgave them for their sister's death and never quite trusted him. It was so sad when family was on the outs.

It had taken him years, but Albus had finally maneuvered his brother into a position where he "owed him" and really, really needed Albus' help to avoid Azkaban. Albus helped him alright, but the price Aberforth had to pay was to swear an oath to his brother. Aberforth had seriously considered just going to Azkaban, but in the end, he had no choice but to become a minion, a pawn, a virtually slave to his brother's whims and schemes.

To this day he still regretted not going to Azkaban, especially now.

Yes now, his elder brother Albus had become a dictator worse than anything that Gellert Grindelwald could aspire to. Hell, even Voldemort had nothing on Albus. Albus was still known and proclaimed as the Leader of the Light, well-respected, eyes twinkling, grandfatherly smile on his face BUT having a crushing grip on the throats of Magical Britain.

And there was nothing that Aberforth, or anybody else could do about it except to accept it unconditionally or die.

But Dumbledore didn't care about his brother. Aberforth wasn't important in the grand scheme of things. He had his uses and even though he was the only blood relative Dumbledore had left, well…Aberforth was expendable. And he knew it. Albus knew he knew it. Aberforth knew that Albus knew that he knew it. Neither of them cared what the other knew and nobody else did it – even though nobody knew. (Whew!)

Minerva McGonagall had once been an optimistic young girl, full of life, love, power, talent and potential. But that was long ago in another lifetime. Now she was just one of the most subdued minions and overused pawn on Dumbledore's chessboard.

She now stood before the great wizard, a look of worry on her face and fear in her voice. The fear was not for herself, no it was for one of her favorite students, Hermione Granger.

Granger had sent her a letter asking why she had not been made Head Girl. She deserved to be Head Girl, should have been Head Girl and had been promised the position by the Headmaster himself. But she had not received it. McGonagall read the contents of the letter and could read between the lines just how confused and hurt the girl was. The girl would have to accept it but she just wanted to know why.

McGonagall had ignored the request as she didn't have the answer. Albus hadn't given her one saying only that he had decided that Padma Patil would be the Head Girl.

Blaize Zabini was the Head Boy instead of Ronald Weasley, who had also been promised the position since his first year. Molly Weasley was furious. It was to McGonagall that the howler was sent. Molly Weasley was a tactless, bigoted, many times stupid, bigmouth bitch if there ever was one but even she wouldn't dare send Dumbledore a howler. So it had been McGonagall who had been commanded by the Weasley matriarch to explain why her little Ronnie was still just a Prefect.

Albus just told Minerva to "handle the situation with Molly" and would say nothing else on the subject, so Minerva had received one howler after another. Apparently Dumbledore had lifted the ward keeping out howlers addressed to Hogwarts teachers – just because he could.

Finally Minerva stopped by the Ministry and had a long, serious talk with Arthur Weasley. That had stopped Molly from sending howlers to Minerva. However, it was then that Ronald Weasley had sent a very nasty, disgusting letter to Hermione Granger blaming the poor girl for him not being made Head Boy. That made no sense but then common sense was not in great abundance in many of the Weasleys.

Minerva had been so shocked by the letter had showed it to the Headmaster who just ignored it. The next letter Minerva received from Hermione's father enclosing another copy of the first letter as well as a copy of an even worse letter sent to his daughter by the Weasley boy. Impossible as it seemed, the second letter was more disgusting, disturbing and…well just impossible to ignore. The girl's father had informed Minerva that his daughter would not be returning to school and would be doing private study before taking her NEWTs at the Ministry.

Once again she showed Albus the letters and he did look as if the second letter had hit a nerve. He actually did give a small sigh before informing his Deputy that "he would take care of it" and that Ms. Granger would definitely be returning to school.

His idea of taking care of it had been to send Snape to the Grangers to inform them of their daughter's school plans and threaten dire consequences. Hermione had written a third letter to her Head of House informing her of what had happened. That letter unnerved Minerva McGonagall. She had once again gone to Dumbledore, received a look of exasperation and told not to worry about it. He would have a talk with Ronald Weasley.

Apparently either he hadn't had a talk with the Weasley boy, the boy hadn't listened properly or, and this McGonagall feared was what really happened, the boy had been given a free hand in "putting the Mudblood in her place."

Now here stood Minerva McGonagall at 11:48 p.m. on September 1, 1997 in the Headmaster's office reporting the near fatal injuries received by Hermione Jane Granger.

The witch was distraught. She reported that the Granger girl had been brought into the Infirmary an hour before after having been found severely beaten and cut up with a knife. She had been found by Severus Snape as he was returning to the dungeon area. He administered basic first-aid to stabilize her enough to conjure a stretcher and take the girl to the Infirmary. He assisted Madame Pomfrey in treating the girl before summoning a house elf to fetch McGonagall.

It had taken Pomfrey and Snape nearly an hour to treat the girl as she had nearly died. Had Snape not found her when he did, it was possible that she would have died or been too far gone to save. Once Minerva had arrived, took one look at the girl and had asked "Who?" There was no answer.

"Apparently whoever did the deed used his fists and a non-magical knife so as not to be found out," Snape had said. "Have you any idea, Deputy Headmistress as to who could have committed such an act?"

Minerva looked at Snape who was looking directly into her eyes. She then looked over to her old friend Poppy Pomfrey who also held her eyes in a glare. The three of them could take a good guess but they needed proof before they could just go around accusing anyone, especially if their best suspect was one of the Headmaster's most protected Gryffindors.

Pomfrey and Snape had fixed Granger's most serious and life-threatening injuries. They had taken pictures of the girl's injuries and had made a list of the injuries she had received. The slashes on her face had been cleaned and treated and when she stabilized and was in no actual danger, since they were not made magically, they could be erased leaving no physical scars. Mental scars yes, but physical ones, no.

There were also many bruises on her neck as not only had she been chocked but her neck had been used to slam her head repeatedly into the castle walls causing the worst of her head wounds. The bruises were so deep that, well…."

Taking a closer look, McGonagall asked, "Severus unless I am greatly mistaken, are those fingerprints on the bruises?"

Snape took a close look at the bruises and apparently yes, there were fingerprints as for some reason they had missed wiping blood off of the girl's neck. A perfect pair of fingerprints were visible on the girl's neck.

Both McGonagall and Snape were Half-bloods and although they usually denied a lot of their Muggle heritage, both knew about fingerprints. Snape quickly made a copy for use as evidence. If these prints matched those of whose they thought were, well then not matter what threats he used to make the girl keep quiet, this would condemn him.

Pomfrey sent her personal elf to find Ron Weasley, stun him if he were conscious, and instructed the elf how to lift a copy of his prints. The elf returned within ten minutes. His prints matched.

"That son of a bigmouth, low-class, bigoted bitch," snapped McGonagall much to the shock of Snape. "I won't allow him to get away with this." That said the witch left the Infirmary and headed to the Headmaster's office.

The witch was venting her righteous fury at Albus Dumbledore. She said many things, some of them not new but nonetheless relevant, especially since Harry Potter had been sent to Azkaban. She was so very angry that despite her venting her spleen and her usual self-control still mostly intact, Dumbledore could see tears forming in her once beautiful and alive blue eyes.

He enjoyed watching her, seeing and hearing her distress. Seeming to demand yet in reality begging him to do something to correct this outrage to give justice to an innocent young girl – no woman, as she was of age. He kept his face passive, leaving her to guess, to hope that he was going to right this wrong and punish the transgressor. Therefore when she finally finished her rant, she waited for his answer, hoping it would be the one she wanted, the one that justice demanded.

He acted as if he was thinking, yet he was merely prolonging the suspense. Finally he said, "I'll take care of it." He then dismissed the shocked woman, who refused to move until he finally had to arise from his throne, and escort her out the door.

Damn that felt good. He had once again crushed McGonagall, denied her the justice she requested as he usually did. And there wasn't anything she could do about it. No matter how much evidence she, Pomfrey and even Snape gathered, Dumbledore would just dismiss it.

He had allowed the Weasley boy (he would never truly be a real man), to vent his anger on Granger. Oh yes, it was a cruel thing to do as Granger had been a very faithful pawn and had done anything and everything Dumbledore had ever asked of her. But despite her intelligence, her talent, her faithfulness and, yes he would say, her probably willingness to die for Dumbledore, when all was said and done she was still a Mudblood - and a female.

A Mudblood and a female much like Lily Evans had been.

He had planned on that girl being her generation's Minerva McGonagall. Brilliant, brave, noble, beautiful, vivacious (Minerva had only been _very pretty_ and vivacious), a natural leader and innovator of her peers, the type of female with great potential and the dedication to get great things done. Naturally she would have to be crushed.

There was a great secret in the Magical World which had been closely held and passed down for millennia. Witches were more powerful than wizards, therefore they had to be tamed, kept down, humiliated and all their potential, power and talent channeled into more useful things like bearing the next generations of powerful wizards, being subjugated to the weaker but definitely more worthy male and never to know all the great things they were capable of doing.

Morgan LeFay had been more powerful than Merlin, but even so long ago it was the victors who wrote the history books. Morgan had loved Merlin and he used that against her. They fought she with just her power, he with his wiles, cunning and unscrupulousness. Therefore he eventually triumphed, as was only right and just in Dumbledore's mind. History had painted Morgan as evil personified and that held true today.

But Lily Evans had the gall to not only refuse to become subservient to the Great Albus Dumbledore, she hated him and refused to be cowed. That wouldn't do at all. It had taken over six years, but he managed to finally get her under control. It was only after he had directly ordered Minerva to "do something to make the girl see sense….or else" that Minerva had slipped the girl Amortenstia, forcing her to finally succumb to James Potter's advances.

Potter had desperately wanted Lily Evans if only because she was the one thing he couldn't have. He already had wrestled the boy to his side and away from the influence of his own father. The Marauders were the golden boys of Hogwarts in their era. Albus always indulged them, winking at their pranks and antics and allowing them to get away with just about everything – short of murder. If the truth be known there had been some real accidents due to an overzealous prank, which Albus had quickly covered up.

By their fifth year he had all four boys obligated to him in many ways and although they would never guess it, they were completely under his control. He could manipulate them to do anything he wanted done and their rewards were to rule the school. They worked well in his agenda.

Being the master manipulator that he was, Dumbledore decided who would marry and to whom. Severus Snape and Lily Evans had been childhood friends but Dumbledore had plans for the Snape boy. He had arranged for the breakup of that friendship at the end of their fifth year so that Snape would eventually be driven to become a Death Eater and then to use his friendship with the girl (even if at the time he had to use compulsion charms to turn the boy into his spy). That was exactly what had happened.

The Potter boy was the last and most precious heir of a very influential, wealthy and powerful ancient and noble house and his unknowing and complete submission had been so very sweet. He had managed to turn the son against the father. He had hoped the son being so totally in his grasp would force the father to side with Dumbledore so as not to alienate the son further. Instead, the foolish James Potter had taunted his father to the breaking point, believing that as the only heir he could get away with anything. But then his mother was found to have less than a year or so to live, which would leave Charlus Potter free to remarry and beget another heir or two.

Charlus had even gone so far as to attempt to negotiate with Voldemort and others to end the war on a mutually agreeable outcome beneficial for Magical Britain. It would stop the fighting, the killing and no doubt end the war and Dumbledore's agenda for the Greater Good. Dumbledore had arranged for the massacre stopping those meddling fools. Then James Potter would turn over his vote and most of his fortune to Dumbledore.

James Potter had "gotten" Evans but now Dumbledore had "convinced" Potter to marry the Mudblood to annoy his father and produce an heir so that his father would not remarry. James thought that marrying a Mudblood, no matter how enchanting and desirable she was, would be a great prank to play on his father so he agreed. What James Potter didn't know was that it was all part of Dumbledore's plan to not only guarantee him controlling the Potter vote and fortune but there was another nefarious plan in the works to stop Voldemort once and for all.

That plan had also worked but not exactly as he had planned. No matter, the boy was an orphan and after making certain that there would be no others challenging his will, the boy was his to control, abuse, mold, use and dispose of when the time was right. Once again it hadn't gone completely as planned, but Albus adapted and things worked out well.

The boy was still alive, but basically neutralized until such time as Dumbledore needed him. Only Dumbledore knew that Voldemort could come back – if he had another follower or two to assist him like the last time.

So he would let Ronald Weasley slide. When (and if) Granger recovered, she would be desperate to do anything Dumbledore asked to be protected from Ronald. Of course, the new graduation requirement would be implemented this year – meaning that no one would leave Hogwarts without swearing "the oath" of allegiance to Dumbledore and Granger was no exception.

However, he would be making her take the oath early – and adding a few special conditions. Conditions similar to ones which Minerva McGonagall had been forced to swear all those many years ago.

He smiled thinking about exactly what oaths he would force on the girl. And there was nothing that she or anyone else could do to stop it.

But unknown to the very smug Headmaster, someone was planning on stopping his plans, or at least some of them.

Minerva McGonagall slowly made her way back to her quarters. She needed a drink and she needed it now. But it seemed that she was in that condition a lot these days, ever since Harry Potter had been sent to Azkaban.

That had been the turning point. Everything had come crashing down when that happened. The one thing she had ever asked of her former mentor – no begged him – all centered around first Lily Evans and then her son Harry. As always Dumbledore had let her down, broken promises usually on a whim.

He knew there was nothing she could do to change his mind. He knew she knew and she knew he knew she knew as the old clique went. No matter how faithful she was, no matter what orders she had been forced to blindly obey, he did what he wanted, knowing it would hurt her, crush her, eventually destroy her if only in spirit, as usual.

And oh how he enjoyed doing it. Not just to her, no he did such things to everybody he had ensnared. Some, like James Potter, Sirius Black and poor Remus Lupin, never realized they were being used, but they were and all but Lupin had paid the ultimate price. And Lily, her sweet, innocent Lily…and then her Harry.

Tonight she refused to think about what had happened to Harry, at least before he was sent to Azkaban. She had already thought on that too much. What had frightened her most was Albus being so indifferent about the escape. He had always controlled the child so tightly, planned and calculated ever minor detail of his life until his imprisonment. She didn't know why but she could guess the reasons and like always, there was nothing she could do about it.

What did Albus know? He had to have some plan since he wasn't worried about the boy. He was entirely too calm and she was worried. . . . .it.

What she feared the most was that he could be dead. Likely if he was she wouldn't know about it until or unless Albus chose to inform the world.

But right now, other than knocking back the strong, smoky liquid in the silence of her quarters, she had another worry. Hermione Granger. Another Lily in the making, except that whereas Lily was never a pawn until Minerva had been ordered to ensure it happening, Hermione had been too gullible to realize how she had been manipulated by the Master Manipulator. She truly thought she was helping the Headmaster to "help" Harry. It was only in the past year when she perhaps realized exactly what she had done.

No matter. At this very moment she was in the Infirmary fighting for her life. Poppy had told Minerva that the girl would survive, but her life would never be the same. The fear and the sense of helplessness could easily doom the girl. Would she have the courage or even the will to live after all that had happened to her in the past 14 or so months?

Suicide was a possibility. Minerva had seen it happen over the years to certain students who Albus had…made use of and then no longer mattered or were not needed. Would the girl consider such a thing, or would she just exist and live in fear due not only to those two dreadful letters but also from what had happened to her last night?

Well for once, if only for this once, Minerva McGonagall would do something to prevent it…even at the cost of her own life.

Dumbledore hadn't said anything to Ron Weasley. By breakfast the next day it was all over the school that the hated Granger girl had had "an accident" of the worst sort. Since nothing had been said or done to him, by dinner time Ron had started to brag about how he had "put that insufferable Mudblood in her place."

He had expected congratulations on his handiwork, at least from the Slytherins as he knew they hated Granger more than they hated him, but since they had stopped talking to him to even insult and taunt him after Potter had been imprisoned, they weren't about to come up, pat him on the back and say "well done Weasley." But Ron was too stupid to realize that.

The strangest thing was how his current girlfriend, Lavender Brown, had failed to ooh and ah over his latest feat of daring do. Instead both she and Parvati Patil looked at him strangely and said nothing. No doubt they were too much in awe of his manly forcefulness and his cleverness at getting revenge on the girl who he had said had prevented him from being made Head Boy.

Even Dean and Seamus hadn't given him the kudos he expected. Instead they made excuses to leave the House and avoided him for the next two days. If Ron had stopped talking and actually noticed things, he would have seen that he was being avoided by everyone. But Ron was too self-absorbed and just continued on his merry way.

Meanwhile Granger was still unconscious. Her only visitors had been McGonagall, Padma Patil and Blaize Zabini, in their capacity as student heads. Padma and Blaize had looked at Granger, asked her condition, chatted a bit with McGonagall and then left the school to stroll by the lake. It was one of the few places where it was thought to be safe and to have a private talk.

Granger's injuries had been the topic of their discussion, as it had been of the whole school. No one really "talk about it" just noted that it had happened and kept their own counsel or confided in a friend. It was a well-known fact _that there was nothing anybody could do about it_. People only wondered and feared if they or a friend would be the next "victim" of the tyranny of Emperor Albus I and his most vicious minions.

By the time the weekend came around, Ron had finally noticed that people were avoiding him. Even Lavender had been making herself scarce until Ron sought her out and complained about being ignored. That seemed to put the "fear of Ron" into the girl. He had made go to the Room of Requirement with him so that they "could have some fun" or in other words so that Ron could fulfill a few fantasies he had been having over the summer.

He had ordered the room to look like a "love den" or at least his idea of one. To Lavender it looked like something the Marquis _de Sade_ would prefer to get him in the mood. Ron had the time of his life as he made Lavender to anything that came to his mind. When he was done with her, the girl managed to go back to Gryffindor Tower and throw herself in the shower stall, using the hottest water she could stand. She spent over an hour in the steaming water attempting to scrub herself clean, crying as she did so. It wasn't until Parvati came in and coaxed her out of the stall that Lavender broke down and told her best friend exactly what had happened to her.

The only thing the two friends could do was to cry and hope that Ron Weasley would find himself another girlfriend ASAP.

Ron had had a wonderful time. The next morning while Lavender lay in her bed wishing she was dead, Ron stuffed a prodigious amount of food down his gullet at breakfast. He outdid himself. He chatted with Dean and Seamus, bragging about what he had done the night before leaving out nothing, while shoveling the food down his mouth, chewing enough to swallow with bits and pieces falling out of his mouth or being flung out along with his spittle.

Dean and Seamus said nothing, they just stared. Ron thought this was because they were awed by his sexual prowess. Finally sated with food and bragging, Ron announced he was going to go for a fly as, after all, "After a night of good fucking there is nothing like a ride on a good broom, especially a broom I got for services rendered." He always said that about the broom.

So a very happy and content Ron Weasley took out Potter's broom, mounted it and took off into the sky. He usually sped up immediately, glorying in the acceleration. He would then level off and just fly, circling the sky, speeding up, then slowing down then repeating. He would do a few trick maneuvers to impress the audience down on the ground. Naturally they would notice the great Ron Weasley and be awed. Actually they didn't but he thought they did.

This morning something felt wrong with the broom. Once he obtained enough altitude the broom seemed to develop a mind of its own. It started flying out over the Forbidden Forest. Ron tried to turn it, but for some reason it didn't obey his command. No matter, he liked flying over the forest because…it was forbidden and Ron liked breaking the rules.

But then it happened. Ron was flying over the forest and looking down saw a few very large Acromantulas lurking below. He panicked as the one thing he feared most was spiders, even small spiders. But Acromantulas were large, vicious and man-eaters. He tried to turn the broom around but without success. The spiders noticed. Then to his utter horror, the broom snapped in half and he started falling.

It was breakfast time for the spiders.

Molly Weasley was inconsolable. She couldn't (or wouldn't) stop screaming, wailing, expressing her grief. How could such a thing have happened to her baby boy? Someone must pay.

But as far as Dumbledore knew, it had been a dreadful accident. After all it was a used broom, the one which had belonged to the Dark Lord Potter. Perhaps he had put curses on it. Why said curses had taken over 15 or so months to work was unexplainable, but it was Dumbledore's verdict and _Dumbledore was never wrong_.

Molly expressed her grief and she chose to do most of it at Hogwarts – loudly and long. She wanted her baby buried at the school even though she knew it was against regulations. But Dumbledore would make an exception, wouldn't he?

No he wouldn't. It was just a tragic accident and besides there wasn't much left of Ron to warrant a casket. Just the broken pieces of the well-known broom, bits and pieces of clothing and things he carried around in his pockets, his wand and a few recognizable tuffs of the famous Weasley red hair.

It had rained the day of Ron's memorial at the Burrow. Only family and special friends attended. Molly wanted Lavender Brown to attend but the poor girl had been hospitalized in the Infirmary _no doubt due to her understandable great gr_ ief. Actually it was due to her understandable great RELIEF, but nobody would be telling Molly that.

It was the day after Ron's interment in the Weasley Family plot that Hermione Granger finally came out of her coma. Madame Pomfrey "broke the news" to her about her fellow housemate's untimely demise and noted with pleasure the girl's great relief.

And nobody ever knew that just this one time, with the help of some books which even Albus Dumbledore never knew she had, as well as the extra wand she had also hidden from him, that Minerva McGonagall _was able to do something about it_!

Everything belongs to JKRowling except the mad plots and the occasional character I have added. I make no money on this and just write to express my warped sense of imagination.

Chapter 7 – Meanwhile Back at the Villa

While all of these things were happening at Hogwarts, the Ford-Hills were settling in nicely in the villa they had rented for the year. The villa was located close to Lake Como in Italy. It wasn't on the Lake as those houses were very costly. Besides "Ruth" (Bella) was afraid of water. Since all three Magicals had watched a copy of _The Wizard of Oz_ "Geoff" (Harry) had teased her unmercifully when she nixed the idea of renting a house right on the Lake.

"I am not afraid of regular water, just lake water." "My sisters and I were raised as proper Pureblood girls and learning to swim was not considered ladylike, so we never learned. During the ride over the lake to Hogwarts I had the misfortune of having Warwick Wimley, a filthy Half-blood but of good family, and two of his disreputable friends, force their way onto the boat I was riding in with three other girls. As you know, it's only 'three to a boat' and for good reason. Well halfway there Wimley and his friends started rocking the boat back and forth and the next thing I knew I had fallen in."

"And you didn't melt?" asked Harry cheekily.

"No. I did sink like the proverbial stone and naturally that half-breed, oversized Dumbledore-loving fool didn't notice – despite the other three girls screaming like banshees. Fortunately, the Giant Squid saved me and took me to shore so that I actually beat the boats."

"I take it you avenged your ducking?"

Bella looked at Harry, smiled slightly and said, "Now what do you think?"

It all worked at for the best as the villa they were renting was a much better house for the price than if they were on the lake shore. It was off a hidden driveway. The first floor had a formal living room, a respectable dining room, and another room which could be used as a family room which was set up for television reception. A large, airy kitchen with attached pantry was the only other large room and led out to the back kitchen garden, where no herbs had been planted for ages, although there were rose bushes and a few flower beds in desperate need of care.

The second story contained four bedrooms, the master bedroom having an attached bathroom and another bathroom served for the other three bedrooms. There was a slight attic which served only for storage but a house elf or two could live there.

On the side of the house was a small garage, big enough to hold one car. There was a cellar of sorts which had been used to store wine but could be used as a potions lab, since Rabastan was tutoring Harry in potions since Snape….well since Snape didn't teach anybody a damn thing unless they were a Slytherin.

The house was adequately furnished except one had to bring their own linens, kitchen equipment, dishes and tableware. Bella had a wonderful time shopping for the necessities but Harry chose the kitchen equipment since he and Kreacher would be doing the cooking. Harry offered to give Bella lessons and she surprised him by saying "why not."

Harry did like cooking but hated doing it at the Dursleys for the simple reason that he never got to eat the "good stuff" but now, armed with several cookbooks on Italian, French, German and Greek cuisine, Harry was eager to teach, experiment and EAT! They all had to follow a healthy diet as they were still recovering so cooking a Mediterranean diet was just the thing. They had lived in Germany temporarily and Rabastan liked the food and everybody loved French food, except Harry who never got to eat it up now, and he was learning to enjoy it.

They had gone to Germany after leaving Lisbon because Rabastan was fluent in German and there was a resort or two he wanted to check out. Here they could settle down on holiday while searching for a place to live. While there Harry learned how to drive. He was of an age to be learning and since Rabastan and even Bella had official British driver's licenses, the plan was for Harry to teach Rabastan and _maybe_ Bella depending on how she behaved.

There was also a school which Rabastan wanted to attend. While in Azkaban, the Lestranges had tried teaching Harry Latin and French to pass the time, and had continued the lessons while in Lisbon. The school they were going to attend specialized in teaching a language by total emersion. It was expensive but worth it. Even the likes of Dudley Dursley could have picked up enough of a language to understand something, and then a series of books and tapes continued the education. It was usually used by diplomats going to a new assignment.

By the time Harry and Bella had spent their month learning German (Harry was very good picking up languages) they had decided to look for a house to rent in Italy away from magical centers. Then they all had to learn Italian. In the meantime, they all did more study in computers and both Harry and Rabastan took a quick, basic course in mechanics.

It seemed that Rabastan had fallen in love. Oh not with a woman but with cars. Harry was basically self-taught since he had been responsible for not only washing and waxing the various Dursleys automobiles, but at times had to change the oil and do a small repair like replacing windshield wipers, changing and rotating tires, etc.

All his life Rabastan would never dream of cleaning anything other than himself by taking a bath, shower or casting a cleaning charm on his clothing, but now after he got his "baby" one saw Rabastan lovingly washing, waxing and even detailing his "beautiful girl" as he called the car.

Bella was forbidden to drive the car even if she learned and if she ever did get around to learning how to drive, she had to get her own car. Only Rabastan and occasionally Harry could drive the car. NO BELLA, RUTH, BRENDA OR WICKED LADY (Rudolphus' pet name for Bella) could even touch it.

They had formed their "story" before leaving Lisbon. They were the Ford-Hill family. Ford from Ruther **ford** and Hill from Churc **hill** and it was a hyphenated name as Rabastan had always liked hyphenated names. He thought it actually gave a Muggle class, and they were pretending to be Muggles.

Steven (not Steve, but always Steven) had been a British civil servant. Things had been deteriorating in his workplace and when he was passed over for a well-deserved promotion which was instead given to the totally unqualified nephew of a department head, well, that was it. It was about that same time that his godfather had died. His godfather was rather eccentric (but then weren't all Middle Class Brits that way?) and having never married had become very close to Steven. Mostly to annoy his nephews and nieces he had left his entire estate to his godson.

It was not a grand fortune, or at least not enough to retire on, especially when one had a son who would be going to University soon, but it was enough to live quietly and comfortably for a few years to recover from the last few "difficult years" which the family had endured.

Brenda (or Ruth as she preferred to be known as) was the devoted wife and mother. She had suffered a nervous breakdown a few years ago due to the fact that, after many years of trying to have another baby so their son would not be an only child, she had tragically lost a daughter in her sixth month after being involved in a horrific auto accident (a drunk driver hit the car she was riding in head on). Ruth had nearly died and had had to have extensive surgeries. Her best friend had died on impact and poor Ruth had to have a hysterectomy.

If that wasn't bad enough, their poor, trustful, naïve only son, Geoffrey (or Geoff) had been betrayed! He had had a childhood friend, who was a girl, and they had been inseparable growing up. They did everything together. Being British, they had gone off to separate public schools but wrote weekly to each other. When they were both 14, they officially became boyfriend and girlfriend. Poor Geoff had it "very bad" for "that girl" as Ruth called her and she refused to ever say her traitorous name.

"But during the summer holiday between their fifth and sixth year, Geoff had come home from school and rushed over to see his "lovely lass" (Bella did tend to be overly dramatic when inventing a story), he went into the girl's house only to find that #$*& ## in the arms (among other things) with that odious bastard (again no name was said) who had for years been considered Geoff's best male friend."

"Now our Geoff is a good boy, raised to be respectful of women and a gentleman. He knew that they were too young to take their love to the next level, other than handholding, kissing and cuddling, but there was that, that hussy and that detestable fiend actually DOING THE DEED. My poor baby was shocked and horrified and in his confusion, he ran from the house, just running to get away from the scene and he unthinkingly ran out into the street where…where he was hit by a lorry, thrown up in the air, landed and rolled down an incline landing in a bramble bush."

That usually received looks of horror and sounds of shock and pity to whomever Bella was telling the sad tale to.

"We almost lost our boy that day not only to the accident but…his will to live was gone. Both Steven and I never left his bedside and I pleaded and cried for him not to die as if he did I would surely follow and where would that leave his poor father?"

More looks and sounds would follow especially when Bella managed to conjure up an actual tear or two. "Fortunately he rallied and lived, but not until he had to undergo several surgeries and months of physical therapy. He left school and has been privately tutored for the past two years and will be until he is ready to attend university."

Then Bella would go on to tell her audience that they had rented this house so that Geoff to finish his studies, completely heal physically and hopefully mentally and then decide which university he wanted to attend. Both she and Steven were helping with his private studies and trying to regain their own energies and to do their own healing.

"We've been through so much, with Steven's job, the loss of our daughter, my accident, Geoff's betrayal and accident. Hopefully we can rebuild our lives in this lovely place and plan a different and better future."

If "Steven" managed to get a word in, he mentioned that he was using the opportunity to do something he had always wanted to do – write a book. "Fiction probably, but who knows, maybe I'll do some research and write some dry, scholarly tome. But I'll never know until I try so, it will probably be fiction."

"Geoff" usually just kept quiet, smiled shyly and acted like an angsty teenager (which he really was after all).

They were having a grand old time. Harry was doing Muggle studying, as he was actually planning on attending a university. He was continuing with his language lessons, Rabastan or "Dad" as Geoff called him was completely retraining him in potions and was giving him lessons in Runes and Arithmancy. Bella was continuing his education in Transfiguration and Charms and of course, dark arts.

They did have the advantage of having the Black library in their possession and Harry was learning magic that Dumbledore would definitely have forbade (because he didn't want the kid to be learned and competent in anything), Molly Weasley would have screeched loudly about and Hermione would have chastised him, called it dark and evil but would have really like to have the knowledge for herself. That made his study all the more sweet.

When not tutoring Harry, Rabastan was taking care of his car and was usually to be found on-line. He was trying to write as he really did have the secret ambition to be a writer. What little fiction to be found in the Magical World was either written for children or was dreadful. He would risk reading Muggle fiction when he was young and enjoyed reading it.

He started by writing fan fiction! Well he liked reading it and was very fond of Star Trek, Star Wars and something called "Forever Knight." He had to start somewhere. He eventually posted some of his work and it was respectively received but was nothing to write home about. But then there was nobody at home to write to.

Bella tried cooking. She managed to do salads as she had learned to chop, cut, slice, mince, etc. in Potions. Any type of egg dish, such as omelets, or other breakfast food, she could prepare and people could actually eat it and survive. She was a wonder at making toast and brewing coffee. Anything else….well, she was trying. She was determined to master the cooking of pasta if it killed somebody. Besides Harry was such an excellent cook and Kreacher needed to cook to be of use, so she could take her time.

She did shopping when Steven or Harry would drive her to the shops. She made the odd female acquaintance and the Ford-Hills were invited to the random dinner or party. Once they even held a dinner party to pay back invitations they had received. Harry had cooked a British-based dinner which Ruth claimed credit for – to keep up appearances.

Their Italian friends were at first a bit wary, but did manage to eat, if not enjoy, the Beef Wellington, with Yorkie puds on the side, fresh green peas, sprouts, buttered brandied carrots and trifle for pudding with an excellent cheese tray and fruit ending the dinner. Steven had procured some respectable French wine and brandy as well as the requisite port and cigars for the men to drink and smoke once the ladies had retired to the formal "drawing room" and a good time was had by all. Even Kreacher was happy as he got to wash and dry all the pots, pans, dishes and glassware and then launder and iron the table linens.

Harry had turned 17 shortly after they arrived in Italy. As per the Goblins' advice, he didn't try to claim the Potter vaults. Both Dumbledore and the Ministry had, but failed. After it was finally drummed into their heads that as per the Will of Charlus Potter, the Potter fortune could not be claimed except by the rightful heir, at Gringotts, etc., Dumbledore and the Ministry stopped trying – for the moment.

Dumbledore had much on his plate – he was taking over an entire country after all, and that took up a lot of time, energy and evil plotting.

The Goblins at the London Gringotts Branch were very busy as well, moving as many vaults from their branch to other branches. Now that Harry was of age, he could give permission to move the Potter vaults out of the country without actually having to go to London to claim them. Once they were out of Britain and he was pronounced "recovered" from his many abuses, injuries and magical maladies, he could then go to Berlin Gringotts (where he decided to move the Potter vaults) or Madrid Gringotts where the rest of the Black vaults were going. The Lestranges had their vaults already moved to Vienna Gringotts.

So far Dumbledore and the Ministry (really the same thing as "Dumbledore" at this point) did not know what the Goblins were up to. There were rumors going around, but nothing could be proven – yet. It was only a matter of time and once the knowledge reached Dumbledore, the Goblins would have to leave immediately. Hopefully the only vaults and accounts that would be left were those belonging to Dumbledore or his enslaved minions. All they needed was time.

The "Ford-Hills" received updates concerning not only their accounts but the news coming out of Britain. Even the Goblins didn't know exactly where Potter and the Lestranges were living. They communicated by house elf courier. They had purchased a young elf while living in Germany. Her name was Trudy and she was being trained by Kreacher and, mercifully, by Harry, in some things – like civility. Bella also trained her to act as a ladies' maid and to perform the other niceties a Pureblood lady needed.

Once a month "the elf" as Trudy was known to the Goblins, would go to the Madrid, Berlin and Vienna Gringotts and pick up various financial statements as well as reports regarding what was going on in Britain.

It was by this way that Harry found out about Hermione's "accident" and Ron Weasley's untimely death. The Goblins had a spy at Hogwarts, at least for the moment. The report was very thorough in reporting what had really happened. The only thing which even Dumbledore couldn't find out was who had killed Ron.

It was evident to all but Molly (because it was more trouble than it was worth for even Dumbledore to admit to the woman that her son was murdered), that it had been murder. It was the general opinion at Hogwarts (even by the teachers it was being said) that Ron Weasley truly deserved it. It was ironic that the two main suspects of who could have possibly done the deed were Hermione Granger and the Dark Lord Harry Potter.

Hermione had an air-tight alibi, being in a coma and not coming out of it until after Ron had been dead for a few days. Therefore, that only left the Dark Lord Harry Potter as the most likely suspect. After all it was his broom that snapped in two causing Ron to fall to his death and be devoured (while still alive) by huge, hungry Acromantulas which just happened to be away from their usual territory as if just waiting for a meal to be served.

That was the official finding. Nobody believed that as it was well-known that Granger had been one of those who had been spying on Harry and he would have no reason to avenge her treatment. People could believe that the Dark Lord Harry Potter had killed Ron Weasley for lots and lots of reasons.

Hogwarts had been put on alert for a month after the murder just in case it really was the Dark Lord Harry Potter getting revenge. After all, the Great and Noble, Leader of the Light Albus Dumbledore was at risk with the fiend loose as Dumbledore had captured him and seen to his well-deserved incarceration. Albus Dumbledore was a _National Treasure_ , leader, hero, educator, etc., and needed to be protected.

"Well at least you were right about Granger being abandoned," Rabastan said after they read the reports. "Any idea who could have offed the red-headed bottomless pit?"

"Me for one. I would have gladly done it even if it meant destroying my broom. Unfortunately I didn't do it, so I guess it would probably be Malfoy or one of the other Slytherins. Ron was many annoying and disgusting things and although from what I know now and always suspected he was not well-liked, but as to who would actually hate him enough to kill him….it's anybody's guess."

Bella had to add her two knuts. "Maybe he crossed Dumbles or one of his parents did. From what Wormie said, he was the most useless and annoying of all the Weasley children, thus the most expendable. His nasty death could have been a warning. It would warn anybody with an ounce of sense to behave."

"It could also serve to warn people other than just the Weasleys," Rabastan added. "Murder at Hogwarts is nothing new – it is just covered up very well. Has been for years. Granted when I was at school Snape came the closest to dying, courtesy of Sirius Black and Remus Lupin, but when Rudolphus was a first year, a Muggleborn and a Pureblood from a lesser – and poorer house – met an untimely end. How did they die, Bella?"

She thought for a moment. She was after all two years behind her late husband, but since it involved a Pureblood's death, she should remember. "I think the Mudblood fell off a broom after a Quidditch practice. The others had left and he just said he wanted to fly around some more to clear his head. When he missed dinner and curfew his teammates told their Head of House – can't remember which house it was. They found that his broom had broken and it was estimated that he fell about 40-50 feet and landed on his neck."

"Almost sounds like Ron's death except for the Acromantulas waiting below. What about the Pureblood?"

"I can't remember. I only remember the Mudblood since something like that was always nice to hear about."

"Wait!" Rabastan shouted. "I think I remember who the Pureblood was. It was Wormie's cousin Holloway."

"Holloway?" asked Harry. "If that is a first name it is worse than some of the one we drew out of the hats."

"Holloway was his last name. It was his mother's sister's child. Don't know and don't care about his first name."

"Ooh, ooh, it's coming to me now," Bella said. "Huberta Holloway was Wormie's aunt and she had a godson who had been orphaned. The kid, whose name I can't remember, was the last of his family line and had absolutely no relatives left as they had all died in a dragon pox outbreak – a real dragon pox outbreak. The kid inherited the money from about two other relatives and their families. Wormie's aunt was given custody of the kid since she was his godmother."

"However, Dumbledore was challenging the Will of the relative with the most money as Dumbledore swore the wizard said he was leaving his money to Hogwarts, but his will had been made years before and according to Dumbledore he was intending to do a new one just weeks before his death but hadn't gotten around to it. Rumor had it that Dumbledore was trying to sweet talk Wormie's aunt into signing over that estate to Hogwarts. She refused. He insisted. She wouldn't give in."

"Now the kid and Wormie's cousin were both attending Hogwarts, which was the only reason the kid was alive because he had been at school when all his relatives caught the pox. Somebody sent the kid a box of chocolates. Apparently they didn't know the kid was allergic to chocolates – he broke out in a bad rash. So being a nice kid he gave the chocolate to Wormie's cousin. Being a relative of Wormie, his cousin ate the entire box. Granted it was a small box, but he ate the whole thing in two days. He died on the third day. Apparently a non-traceable poison was in the chocolates."

"Don't tell me the kid had a will."

"No, he didn't but in a case such as this, with him having no living relatives and his being too young to make out a will, then anything he had would be divided between the Ministry and _Hogwarts_. Except it wasn't him who died, but Wormie's cousin. Wormie's aunt saw the writing on the wall and since she had taken him out of school to attend her son's funeral, she didn't let him go back."

"She had a daughter starting Hogwarts the next year, a fact which Dumbledore apparently reminded her about. She took it as a strong hint or rather a threat when Dumbledore tried to convince her godson, in her presence, that since he had some money and _it had been his chocolates which had killed his godmother's only son_ , it would no doubt be a great comfort if he chose to honor his late relative's dearest wish and donate the money he had been planning to donate to Hogwarts.

"From what Wormie said, Dumbles told the kid 'You could establish a memorial to your late cousin and your god-brother with that money, which the school can surely use to a greater good than some trifles a boy your age would buy.' Wormie's aunt and her husband packed up their surviving child and the godson and immigrated to Canada the day after the funeral and Dumbledore didn't find out until it was too late."

"Are you implying our esteemed Headmaster sent those chocolates?"

"Not exactly, but from what Wormie said, the poisoner was never found. In fact if he is to be believed, there was no investigation done except for Dumbles saying 'he was looking into it.' You know like he usually conducts an investigation."

"I wonder if that happened a lot?"

"Well the Goblins did say that Dumbledore always involved himself in the affairs of any orphan he came across, especially if there was money or a seat in the Wizengamot involved."

The only other thing of interest was the Goblins requesting that Harry show up (in disguise) to take the heritage test to acquire the Potter estate. The Goblins estimated that his health should be good enough for him to risk the test but the Goblins would give him a physical to make sure. Then he could claim the Black Lordship ring. Rabastan should also finally make out his Will.

After much discussion, Trudy was sent back with a message that the three of them would visit either the Madrid or the Berlin branch after the Yule holidays. The Goblins had estimated that every vault which they could move out of Britain would be moved by the end of the year.

The three wanted to know if that was when the Goblins were planning on leaving Britain once that was accomplished or were going to stay to the bitter end when the Ministry and/or Dumbledore found out about the moves. They didn't want to risk being at a Gringotts branch if the Ministry did something foolish, or rather more foolish than usual, like raiding a foreign Gringotts branch to try and retrieve the money.

The Goblins wrote back that they would be staying to the bitter end because they were still making money from the vaults and investments for their clients trapped – or rather staying - in Britain. They were bankers after all and didn't really want to give up their livelihood or property without a fight. Therefore, there would always be some Goblins still at Gringotts to die with honor defending their bank.

"How noble," Bella remarked to her two wizards. "Since when did Goblins become Gryffindors?"

"Since it's their home, their livelihood and their property," Harry snapped back at her. "You were willing to fight and die for Voldemort's crusade defending Pureblood rights and traditions. The Goblins are basically doing the same thing."

Bella was actually a bit shamed by Harry's outburst as once she thought about it, he was right.

And that was when their happy lifestyle started cracking. Bella remembered her "duty" to seek out her Lord and help restore him to a life and power or at least helping him get a body.

She spent several days brooding over this. She felt better than she had in years, so no doubt would probably pass any physical with flying colors. The house was leased for several more months and "Geoff" still had a long way to go before he was ready to take the entrance exams for a university. The kid was smart but he was catching up on years of Muggle education by himself, still learning four languages, continuing with his study of the "relevant" magical courses as well as learning Runes and Arithmancy from the beginning. Even her wonderful Dark Lord might have had a problem with this case load.

She and Rabastan had sworn to stay with him until he was ready to be on his own. With the exception of Rabastan buying his car and a few other things, Harry had been using the Black inheritance to pay all the bills. Well she was a Black and entitled to have Family money spent on her behalf. But the boy didn't have to do it. He was not obligated to them.

Then Bella realized what Harry had become. He was the child she never had and he, and yes even Rabastan, were all she had. They were her family and she didn't want to lose either of them. Yet she wanted, in fact needed, to look for her Dark Lord.

One thing which she and Rabastan hadn't bother to tell Harry about was Barty. Yes, officially Barty Crouch, Jr. was officially and undoubted dead. But so was their Dark Lord. Fudge had had him kissed before he could be interrogated so that scandal could be avoided.

But luck had been with him because the Dark Lord had found about out his demise within hours. Their Lord knew how to reverse a Dementor's kiss! MacNair was sent back to the Ministry to collect the now soulless body. He also got the Dementor who had administered the kiss to Barty. They were quickly brought before the Dark Lord.

The Dementor was under control due to the device the Ministry used to control the dreadful creatures. It kept them from running amok and kissing anybody it could place its gapping maw on. Their Lord had recited something in parsel tongue, did some impressive wand work and the Dementor unwillingly kissed its victim again but this time return Barty's soul.

Everybody present was astounded by their Lord's skill and benevolence. Bella, Rudolphus and Rabastan were still in Azkaban, but once they were freed they had heard about this marvelous action. However, their Lord had sent Barty off to do recruitment in Eastern Europe. He also wanted Barty's being alive kept a secret, so all but the Inner Circle had been obliviated regarding Barty.

Snape didn't know about this other resurrection because as he would later admit to Bella, Voldemort didn't trust him. Oh he had his uses and he was officially Dumbledore's spy, a double agent of true ability. But Snape "didn't feel right" as her Lord told her. Still he could be useful just as long as he wasn't told anything of real importance.

Instead he was fed crumbs of information which he could report back to the Order of the Phoenix. Snape had to give some knowledge to Dumbledore just as Dumbledore gave Snape unimportant knowledge for him to give to Voldemort. It was a game they all played. But whose side Snape was really on was debatable.

Unknown to the proud and canny potions master, the Dark Lord could break through Snape's occlumency defenses. It wasn't easy even for Voldemort, but it could be done, just not often or Snape would know. A lot of cover ups and obliviations had to be done so Voldemort only did it when absolutely necessary.

As far as she and Rabastan knew, Peter Pettigrew had once again escaped and Barty and a few others were on the Continent recruiting. No doubt Lucius had informed Dumbledore of the names of those Death Eaters. Whether or not he knew about Barty's survival was unknown. She wasn't sure if he had been obliviated concerning Barty. Therefore if Dumbledore didn't know about Barty being alive and/or Pettigrew hadn't been caught, there was the chance that they were assisting their Lord getting a body back.

Bella and Rabastan had a talk after Harry went to sleep. Silencing charms were set so the boy would not hear the conversation if he awoke and came down for a snack or whatever it was a teenage boy did when adults were having an important conversation that shouldn't be heard but would somehow manage to stumble upon it.

"Do you think the Goblins know if our Lord has a body or not?"

"Probably not because I doubt they would tell us if they knew. Besides I have a feeling that the only reason they have helped us as much as they have is because we are with Geoff so therefore we might have reformed somehow, but not Dumbledore's 'type of reformation.' You know the old saying the enemy of my enemy is my friend? Well I think that is our relationship with the Goblins and even Geoff."

Rabastan continued. "Two years ago any of us being in the same room without trying to torture or kill the other would be unthinkable. Now look at us. We are a family."

"Now if Dumbledore walked into the house tomorrow morning, the three of us would attack that old #%*%#*%&#&*& within seconds. But what would happen if tomorrow morning our Lord walked into the house, or even Barty or Wormtail?"

"We could tell our Lord that Geoff is interested in joining his glorious crusade."

"Yes we could but would our Lord _believe_ us or would he just start AKing Geoff – and us – before we could say or do anything?"

Rabastan had a point. Bella thought for a moment before saying "Then we must find him before he finds us. But much as I want to find our Lord and rally to his cause once again, I say we risk keeping our word to Harry and see him off to university before we start our search."

"And pray tell dear Bella," drawled Rabastan, "Do you really have any idea of where or even how to search for the Dark Lord?"

She didn't nor did he. Rabastan had always been good at researching things in the world of magic, and now with the computer he was becoming an expert to rival even the annoying and disgusting Granger girl. But he had no clue how to look for their Lord, especially since the likes of Lucius and others had told all of their Lord's secrets to Dumbledore to save their miserable lives and fortunes.

So life continued at the villa. The winter holidays were fast approaching and shopping needed to be done not only for gifts but clothes for their social life. There were several holiday parties and even an actual ball to which they had been invited.

Geoff had some research to do for his correspondence courses. Visits to museums were needed so the small family decided to combine shopping, work and a holiday to get things done. First they drove to Milan for clothes shopping. Steven and Geoff both purchased the evening clothes necessary for the parties and balls, two new suits, shirts, casual wear, socks, neckties and underwear. Bella supervised these purchases and then sent the boys off to the museums while she shopped for herself.

After the three days they spent shopping (or rather Bella) spent shopping, well it was a good thing they mere magicals as they wouldn't have been able to fit everything in the car if Bella hadn't shrank all the clothes and accessories.

After a week's recuperation and Bella making several lists, the trio was off to Florence to buy their holiday gifts and various leather goods as well as taking advantage of the wonderful museums. Armed with a Muggle credit card with a limit of £20,000, Bella bravely and single-handedly attacked the famous city vowing to selflessly "shop till she dropped" as the Muggle saying went.

"I'll take care of your shoe shopping by picking things out so that all you will have to do is show up and try them on to make sure they fit. I will be more than happy to relieve you of the work of choosing my Christmas presents by buying them myself – as I know what I want. Trudy will wrap them so I won't know what is what until I open it and will be oh so surprised finding out what is in the box."

Since there was no point in arguing with any woman (especially one like Bella) when it came to shopping and her receiving exactly what she wanted, "her boys" went blissfully off to their museums. On the second day Steven did risk going to the small magical shopping center to look for books, pick up potion ingredients and purchase some of the newspapers from various countries.

Once a week Trudy went to the magical center in Milan to get foreign newspapers as it was too dangerous for them to have a personal subscription to anything magical. They didn't want to have an owl because of the danger. Besides they had owl repellent spells on their house for protection. The trio had decided to keep an eye on what was happening in Britain besides relying on what the Goblins were telling them. By buying several papers not only did they catch up on what was happening in Europe, it disguised the fact that they could possibly be expatriates from Britain.

Apparently "the Ministry" (meaning Dumbledore) was trying to get back any and all Britons who had escaped…er, left Britain for other countries. The only people who were allowed to leave Britain for business or to immigrate were those who had taken that damn oath. According to the Goblins, Dumbledore wanted his "message" spread throughout the world. Therefore, for someone to leave Britain even temporarily, they were obligated to spread the word of the Light.

In other words, they were missionaries preaching the word of the Light, the word of Dumbledore. Since they had to swear on their life and magic to obey Dumbledore in all things, they were forced to evangelize his message or remain a virtual prisoner in Britain.

On this particular day, Steven sat in a coffee house in the magical section of Florence, having a excellently brewed cup of coffee, nibbling on a bit of pastry and reading the German version of the _Daily Prophet_. Fortunately this newspaper lived up to the name as it printed well-written and truthful news articles. Of interest was an article on the editorial page written by an ex-Briton.

There was no name given for the wizard writing the article as stated he and his family were under the protection of an unnamed government as he and his wife had been declared "enemies of the nation" and their lives were at risk. He only identified himself as the father of one of the families who had originally escaped Hogwarts and whose child had been port-keyed back. The article outlined the horror of living in Magical Britain under the reign of the so-called Leader of the Light.

He gave a brief synopsis of his family's experience and then went on to report on the experiences of several other expatriates or "refugees" as he termed them. Steven had known of some of the things mentioned from the updates the Goblins sent him, but there were a few new things alluded to that even the Goblins possibly didn't know about. It was a fascinating, if not a very disturbing read.

The article ended with a plea to the Magicals of Europe to wake up and see that what was happening in Britain would be happening in their countries if Dumbledore had his way. Since Dumbledore was still the head of the ICW he was using his influence to push for "reform" and the "permanent end of all dark lords and their rebellions" through a world-wide ban of dark magic and the following of the ways of the Light. _**His version**_ of the ways of the Light.

The wizard was urging his fellow magicals to put a stop to Dumbledore's ridiculous crusade, pointing out that one of his eventual goals was to reveal the existence of the Magical World to Muggles.

"Dumbledore has the insane idea that if we Magicals "purify ourselves enough" by riding the world of dark or evil magic, then the Muggles will not only accept the fact of our existence but embrace us as their brothers and sisters. This will supposedly usher in a new era of peace and harmony which will be led by Albus Dumbledore."

It was Rabastan and not Steven whose blood ran cold at reading this. Dumbledore wanting to reveal their world's existence to the Muggle world had been one of the many reasons the Dark Lord started his rebellion. The Statute of Secrecy had been a much needed law as even in the 1600's Muggles far outnumbered Magicals and their unbridled religious fervor caused more death and destruction in the Muggle world than it did in the Magical world. However, many Magicals went to their deaths because frightened, jealous Muggles wanted them all destroyed.

Even then there had been many close calls to exposure over the centuries, the most recent and closest being Grindelwald's war. Granted, it was under the disguise of the war the Muggles called World War II but had the Muggles not rallied together to defeat the Axis Powers which served as Grindelwald's cover, then the Axis and Grindelwald most likely would have won. It had been said that his plan had been to rule the Muggles behind the cover of the Axis Powers, but he would have ruled under the greatest secrecy protecting the secrets of the Magical World.

As Voldemort liked to point out to his followers, it wasn't until the Muggle Allies forces started winning and the Axis was on the verge of collapse that Dumbledore finally had his duel with Grindelwald. Dumbledore had been the victor, but no one had witnessed the actual duel, there was no body shown only the complete disappearance of Grindelwald and Dumbledore's word that the Dark Lord Grindelwald was gone. Even Dumbledore hadn't said his was dead, just defeated.

But Grindelwald was gone and war-weary Magical Europe took it for granted that he was dead, defeated in an epic battle with Albus Dumbledore (which no one had seen) so he became a hero and started on his rise to fame and power. And for one playing the humble, altruistic wizard, Dumbledore had a _**lot of power**_ and had been steadily acquiring more.

But even his most unorthodox plan had never, ever called for the existence of magic to be revealed to the Muggles. That would be catastrophic, but here was Dumbledore actually telling the World of Magic that was exactly what he intended to do.

Once the Dark Lord Harry Potter had been defeated before he could begin by Albus Dumbledore and condemned to Azkaban for the rest of his life to save the world, Dumbledore had gained even more accolades, fame and power. However this time he chose to drop any pretenses and forge his own empire.

The article ended with a plea to join in the movement to oust Dumbledore from his position as Head of the ICW. Besides this movement, others were forming to stop the menace which Great Britain was becoming. The readers were urged to read the other articles which were appearing in this newspaper as well as other news sources on the Continent.

Steven read those articles also before scanning the other papers to look for similar articles. The Briton's article was in all of them and he was correct in saying that other movements existed to try and stop the dangerous ideology of Albus Dumbledore from spreading out of Britain and contaminating the entire Magical World.

Steven quickly left the café and going back to the hotel, called for Trudy. He sent her to make an appointment with the Goblins as soon as possible.

Everything belongs to JKRowling except the mad plots and the occasional character I have added. I make no money on this and just write to express my warped sense of imagination.

Chapter 8 – The New War

At first Bella had squawked about leaving before all her shopping was completed, but Rabastan just pushed the newspaper in her face and said, "Read!"

Harry was given a copy of one of the other newspapers for him to read. Both Bella and Harry agreed with Rabastan and two days later saw them in the Berlin branch of Gringotts.

The news was bad.

"We must devise a new, quicker way of communication between us than the use of your house elf," said the Goblin Bonecrusher, the new Potter Estate Account Manager at the Berlin Gringotts Branch. "I know your safety is of the utmost of importance to you but sometimes things begin to move very quickly and we need to contact you immediately to prevent disaster or discuss possibilities. Much has happened and not just due to those articles, although they have notified wizards of the various rebellions forming. So let us now discuss the latest stupidity going on in Magical Britain."

"In the spirit of the Christmas season," the Goblin began sarcastically, "Emperor Dumbdamn, which is the disrespectful nickname the Goblins in Britain have bestowed on Dumbledore, has decided to launch the biggest charity event in the history of Magical Great Britain, if not the entire Magical World. He has decided that to be a true follower of the Light and to expunge any remaining darkness from the souls of British wizards that a fair share distribution should, _**and will definitely begin no later than this 'joyful and loving holiday season'**_."

"He cited the sad lives of all those poor people left as widows and orphans from the two wars which Voldemort started and which, it seems despite his personal best efforts, the new one which has been started by – and I quote this directly – 'the evil, wicked, appalling, soulless, unscrupulous, deranged unholy terror now known as the Dark Lord Harry Potter.'"

Harry just sighed as the Goblin continued.

"Since despite his best efforts to find you have failed, he is now using your escape and complete disappearance to his advantage. You have been blamed for the death of the 'noble young wizard Ronald Weasley' by way of your former broom. Apparently you had cursed the broom to kill anybody who used it other than you. The fact that you let several people borrow that particular broom on occasion and that Weasley had been gifted the broom via Dumbledore immediately upon your incarceration and he has been using it for well over a year has not been mentioned. But since he helped exposed your darkness to Dumbledore, you went after him in vengeance, just as you did your other 'helpful' friend Hermione Granger."

"So you are saying that I've been accused of beating Hermione nearly to death and then killing Ron?"

"Among other things, yes. Since the publishing of that article by the wizard Richard Headly, a second generation Muggleborn, Emperor Dumbdamn has retaliated by publically stating that despite his Muggleborn heritage, he and his wife Sara, a Half-blood, have joined your Death Eater movement."

"MY WHAT!"

"Yes, you have apparently re-established that wicked organization and are following in the footsteps of your late _**maternal grandfather**_."

"WHAT" was quickly shouted out by the two wizards and the one witch.

"You have apparently re-established that wicked…."

"NOT THE WHOLE THING," yelled Harry, "DID I HEAR YOU RIGHT THAT _DUMBDAMN_ IS SAYING MY MOTHER – WHO VOLDEMORT JUST HAPPENED TO MURDER BEFORE HAVING A GO AT ME – WAS HIS…HIS DAUGHTER?"

"Yes."

"But, but...how can he possibly say such a thing?"

"BECAUSE HE'S ALBUS BLEEDING DUMBLEDORE," yelled a very irate Bellatrix.

"Correct," said Bonecrusher, who despite the seriousness of the situation was acting as a typical Goblin and completely enjoying winding up the wizards and witch.

Taking a deep breath and making a huge effort to control himself Harry finally asked, "Does he have any proof of this?"

"Probably not, but what better way to explain things to his advantage than to publically state such a thing is true. It would not be the first time nor the last he has used such tactics, make such an announcement and, of course, most of Britain and some of Europe will believe him."

"And you will be seen in a bad light, those wizards speaking out against him will be discredited and named Death Eaters, Weasley's murder, and any other "unexplained" murders will be blamed on you and in their fear and panic, Dumbledore gets at least some of the holdouts in Britain on his side and sympathy from some of Europe," Rabastan added.

"So what can we do about this?" asked Harry.

"At the moment, nothing," replied the Goblin once more in a serious mood.

"What do you mean nothing?"

"Exactly that Harry," said Rabastan. "Other than you publically revealing yourself and swearing on your life and magic that you are completely innocent of all the things he is accusing you of and then living through the oath, there is nothing."

"And also," added Bonecrusher, "Since you would not be stupid enough to actually show up in Britain to make the oath, it would be declared as a lie as, after all, any wizard can legally change their name to Harry James Potter, swear such an oath and as that Harry James Potter would be innocent of such things, he would still live. Dumbledore would declare that wasn't really you and it would be believed."

"Besides Harry," said Rabastan, "You don't look like you once did. Due to the removal of the glamour, the surgeries, the restoration of your health, no glasses, manageable hair and even your natural growth, no one would recognize you as the Harry Potter who everybody was familiar with. Hell even your voice and posture have significantly changed. Your personality changed too as you are not now the downtrodden, abused, malnourished, badly dressed kid you were the day you were sent to prison. You now have a sense of self-worth and…hope for a better future."

All that was true but except the hope for the better future as that would only be possible IF Harry avoided the Magical World and Dumbledore.

But that wouldn't work because he was a wizard and even if he spent the rest of his life living as a Muggle in the Muggle world, he would be denying a large part of his nature. He would also have to keep looking over his shoulder for the rest of his life as not only was he legally a convicted "murderer" as well as an escaped prisoner but Dumbdamn had officially declared him a dark lord, the leader of a new rebellion and it was open season on Harry Potter and his declared "followers." Even sympathetic governments would be obliged to turn him over to the British Ministry if he or one of his "followers" were caught.

"So I gather that Bella and I are part of Harry's Inner Circle?"

"Your names were mentioned in Dumbdamn's official announcement."

"Who else was named?" asked Harry.

"Peter Pettigrew, the only known Death Eater who has managed to avoid capture or who hasn't 'seen the Light' and joined up with Dumbdamn or been executed or killed, and several of the known dissidents, such as Richard and Sara Headly, the parents from the articles. I have a list of the others, none of who you probably know, but since they are your 'official minions' you might at least read the list."

The Goblin gave a copy of the list for Harry's perusal before continuing.

"There are certain others who you either know or have heard about. I think you will find the names on this list 'enlightening' and I will be happy to explain the reasons why these names appear on the list."

Looking at the next list the Goblin handed to Harry once Harry handed over the other list to Rabastan, Harry was indeed 'enlightened' at seeing the names.

At the top of the list was the name Amelia Bones, the former Head of the DMLE and the witch who had believed him at his farce of a trial the summer before his fifth year. Her niece Susan, one of Harry's classmates and former DA member was also on the list as were Neville Longbottom, Luna Lovegood, her father Xeno Lovegood, Andromeda and Ted Tonks, Bella's sister and once amusing brother-in-law and Narcissa Black Malfoy, Bella's other sister.

"Okay please explain why these people are on the list especially Neville Longbottom, the Lovegoods, the Tonkses and most especially Narcissa Malfoy."

That got Bella's and Rabastan's immediate attention.

"All are easily explained and I will do so in the order which they appear."

"Amelia Bones was coerced into resigning her position as Head of the DMLE. As you may know she is one of the very few people who is probably the only real honest, noble, dedicated witch in the entire Ministry of Magic. Naturally she never got along with Dumbdamn for many reasons. After your incarceration she was one of the few who tried to get you a trial before the Wizengamot. Dumbdamn tried to silence her but she fought back with everything she had if only on principle. She refused to budge and had several people backing her. Thus she had to go."

"Not only did she refuse to 'listen to reason and obey Dumbdamn' but she refused to take the oath of allegiance which Fudge was pushing. This oath was at that time not associated with Dumbdamn like it is now, but was a Ministry oath of loyalty. Amelia Bones was doing everything to fight against this oath as well as to get Fudge thrown out of office and in this she was succeeding. Unlike those Ministry members with Death Eater ties, not one breath of scandal could be contributed to Amelia Bones."

"Outside of killing her, there was no way she would give up. She had no weaknesses – except one."

"Her niece Susan?"

"Exactly. Once all children went back to Hogwarts in September of 1996, Dumbdamn had them in his power. As I believe you know, that was the year when the 'children of Hogwarts' were trying to convince all of their parents to see reason and join Dumbdamn's crusade by refusing to go home during the holiday breaks. In reality, they were being held for ransom, the ransom being 'take the oath of allegiance to Dumbledore or you will never see your children again' and he meant it."

"As much as it hurt her Amelia Bones refused to budge. She knew if she took the oath her fight against Dumbdamn would be over. However, he offered her a deal. If she resigned her post from the Ministry, he would 'convince her niece' to come home for the Christmas break."

"Now from what we Goblins heard later from Sharpblade, the Bones Account Manager, Amelia Bones met with him as well as her solicitors – the same firm your ancestors used – for legal advice. She wouldn't have to take the oath and Susan would be 'convinced' or rather allowed to come home for the holidays. She was advised by Janus Whitby of Whitby, Wickham and Wolsey that legally even as Headmaster of Hogwarts Dumbledore could not prevent Susan from leaving for the holidays unless it could be proven without a doubt that her very life was at danger should she return home."

"So Susan got to go home because Dumbdamn couldn't legally…"

"Don't interrupt Lord Black! Legally as Headmaster he could not prevent the girl going home, since it could not be proven her life was in danger. However, as Head of the Wizengamot, he could overrule such a law due to "special circumstances" such as Amelia Bones being subject to an official investigation for 'irregularities.'"

"Apparently the Ministry was in the process of filing charges against Bones for just such a thing. Dumbledore then offered her a 'deal' to get custody of her niece back. If she resigned, all charges would be dropped. She couldn't continue her crusade but at least, according to Janus Whitby, the law would be on her side, her niece could return home and they could both leave the country. Since Madame Bones is also well versed in the law of Britain, she realized she had no other alternative but to give in to Dumbledore's demands."

"Madame Bones resigned. However as she was secretly preparing to leave the country with her niece she received a letter from the girl. From reading the letter it was evident that the girl had been forced to write the letter which had probably been dictated to her. It was not the style of writing which a schoolgirl such as Susan Bones would use. Plus although it was the girl's writing and signature, it contained none of the special codes which aunt and niece had always used when writing to each other."

"In short, the girl informed her aunt that she had decided to stay at the school for the holidays to be with her friend Hannah Abbott. Hannah was refusing to go home like most of the students because her parents were being very foolish regarding certain policies which they refused to embrace. Susan then wrote that she too was in complete agreement with Hannah and that her own aunt refused to see reason then…well the girl would be taking advantage of the special summer courses now being offered at Hogwarts and Susan would not see or even contact her aunt until her graduation from Hogwarts."

"That's outrageous," yelled Harry. "So Dumbdamn lied and just screwed Amelia Bones over?"

"Yes, he did. He then wrote a letter to Madame Bones stating how sorry he was but he could not _'convince'_ the girl to return home. He had the gall to compliment the girl on her well-formed sense of ethics and for taking a stand, the reasonable, proper and correct stand, the side of the Light, and trying to urge her own aunt to see reason. Then he wrote that Amelia should learn from her innocent, though very perceptive niece, and join the Light. 'Take the oath and join the Light' he had urged the witch in his letter, 'otherwise I fear you shall never see your niece again as she is such a determined young lady once her mind has been made up.'"

"Of all the lowdown, mean spirited, manipulative, underhanded acts of hypocrisy," yelled Rabastan, "How did he think he could get away with something like that with someone like Amelia Bones."

"Apparently he did," said Harry. "The old bastard has no sense of shame and is used to using people and making them do anything he wants no matter who it hurts and how outrageous it is."

"True young Lord as that has always been his modus operandi. But Amelia Bones is a strong witch and although it took her time, she did manage to get her niece away from Hogwarts."

"Then why did those other parents lose their kids?"

"Because they stayed in the Magical World, bought from magical vendors and didn't have the extra help which Amelia Bones and her niece had. There is an agent at Hogwarts who although he/she has been forced to swear allegiance to Dumbledore has found ways to sometimes be able to work around the oath."

"Mostly he/she is powerless, but there are times when he/she has been able to help. But the reins are being drawn tighter especially since Susan Bones managed to escape. I doubt any others will be as fortunate, but there is always hope."

"Now in regard to your good friends Neville Longbottom and the Lovegoods, they tried to help you. The Lovegoods wrote articles in _The Quibbler_ while Neville tried to convince his grandmother to help."

"But as you might have noticed, Luna Lovegood is…different. I cannot prove that she is a true seer BUT when she has one of her 'sightings' her father at least listens to her. Apparently she had one of these sightings and convinced her father to pack up their printing press and belongings, transfer their accounts to another Gringotts Branch and leave Britain as soon as possible. It proved to be a wise decision."

"She also convinced Neville Longbottom to do the same. His grandmother had been refusing to help him in his attempt to help you. She believed too much in what Albus Dumbledore was saying. So one day the boy came to Gringotts, made arrangements to transfer the contents of his trust vault to another Gringotts overseas branch then left the same day for parts unknown."

"It is quite sad to say but it was three days before the grandmother noticed that her only grandson was gone. She had been busy and said it was not unusual for the boy to miss meals due to losing track of time working in his greenhouses. Also the boy knew he was in disfavor with her so was avoiding her. A search was made by the Ministry at the insistence of Dumbledore himself but the boy wasn't found."

"Naturally for our usual fee we swore our oath not to reveal where the account had been transferred to, so when they tried to check his vault for withdrawals we could truthfully say that he did come to the bank, made a withdrawal of 20 galleons and then left the bank, because he only did take 20 galleons with him before leaving the bank. We hadn't seen him since but promised to contact the Ministry immediately should he or anyone representing him comes to the bank."

"So Neville and the Lovegoods are considered my followers because they left very early and have basically disappeared and since Dumbledore can't find them they must therefore be evil and flocked to my side once I made my escape?"

"Yes. However, young Longbottom reached his legal age one day before you did, correct?"

"Yes, he was born on the 30th and I was born the 31st. But aren't his parents still alive so he can't access his main family vault yet?"

"Yes and no. As his father is incapacitated without any chance of recovery, Augusta Longbottom has been acting as guardian for her grandson until he reached his legal age when he could then assume his title. Once he reached legal age, Neville would be free from his grandmother's guardianship, assume the title of Lord Longbottom and access any and all claims to the vaults."

"His grandmother has access to her own personal dower vault which she has been using since she became a widow. She also has use of any of the Longbottom properties to live at and has never left and still lives at the Manor."

"However, in her capacity of guardian for her grandson, she was allowed to draw on the main vault to pay expenses and much like the Black account, any orders placed or purchases made on behalf of the Longbottom estate were paid directly to the vendors from the main Longbottom vault. The Longbottom estate is mostly self-sufficient food-wise so major purchases like wines, liquors, spices and certain meat purchases are done quarterly if necessary. Since the Longbottoms rarely entertain these days, sometimes no purchases are made until it is absolutely needed and this is what happened."

"I take it," asked a smiling Harry, "that on July 30th of this year Neville claimed his family vault and had it immediately transferred to his new secret account? No one noticed because no purchases were made until lately no doubt in preparation for the holiday season?"

"Yes."

"And that was when Dumbledore decided that he has joined up with me not only because Neville has not only managed to completely escape but acquire his family fortune thus denying Dumbles deriving any benefit from the Longbottom money or vote in the Wizengamot?"

"Ah you are learning Lord Black. It was for this reason that another investigation was made concerning Gringotts. So far the Ministry has not learned anything about the transfer of the vaults, but the Ministry, at the request of Dumbledore, is trying to confiscate the Longbottom vault since the new Lord has been declared an outlaw. They don't know it yet but although there are vaults in Gringotts London Branch _the original vaults and their contents_ are at other branches because the _vault itself_ has been transferred.

"So the logic is that since the vaults are still there all the money and other contents are in there and if only the Ministry can open the vaults, they can get everything."

"Correct EXCEPT, the vaults are not the vaults the Ministry thinks they are."

"Now wait, I'm confused," said Rabastan. "You transferred the contents of Harry's trust vault, the Black vaults and the Lestrange vaults to your other branches. The money is not at Gringotts in London they are in other vaults at other Gringotts. So how can you say that nothing has been moved from the vaults."

"Because nothing has been removed from the Gringotts London vaults except the vaults themselves. That's why it was taking you so long to move all the vaults. You took the main Potter vault, which was number 317 and switched it with another vault 317 from another bank branch. Therefore, you did not transfer funds _from a vault_ to another Gringotts, you transferred the entire vault, doors, walls, ceilings, floor, etc. You swapped vaults, didn't you."

The Goblin smiled while Rabastan yelled "How could they do something like that?"

"Magic!" said Harry much to the amusement of Bonecrusher.

"Let me guess, all Gringotts banks are laid out the same, have the same amount and/or types of vaults but to transfer a vault, like my vault 317, you have to find another vault 317 like you did in Berlin. If it wasn't empty you simply transferred its contents into another vault in the Berlin Branch then switched it with vault 317 at the London Gringotts Branch."

"Yes, that is exactly what we did. That is the reason it has been taking us this long. We had to match up all the closed or frozen vaults with vaults at other Gringotts. Some of the older ones at other branches belonged to established clients who didn't want to change their ancestral vaults. Others we had to offer generous inducements to switch vaults. Most importantly we couldn't tell anyone why so that the news of what we were doing wouldn't leak out to Emperor Dumbdamn. He has spies everywhere."

"Unfortunately one or two vaults had to be switched quickly such as the Longbottom vault as we heard unsettling rumors of certain plans the British Ministry was planning to put into action to seize all the vaults in London Gringotts, such as the Longbottom, Potter, Lestranges, Blacks and many others which have been protected the past few years due to one stalling tactic we Goblins have been able to use. They are completely unaware the vaults at the London Branch are empty, but they will shortly. Unfortunately, we still have a few of the very old vaults which will probably have to be sacrificed."

"You have nothing to worry about since your vaults have all been moved. However we need you to officially claim you the Potter and Black Lordship rings so that the vaults here in the Berlin branch will be totally protected. Thus you should do it now and not wait until after the holidays."

"Is that because of Dumbdamn's plan for a redistribution of the wealth so that everyone has a fair share?"

"Yes. His bill will have to be voted on by the Wizengamot and woe to anyone who votes against it. Although there are many widows and orphans in need, their needs could be taken care of if the Ministry stopped its corruption and drew up and followed an honorable and realistic budget, but as that will never happen, the bill will be passed."

"As always there are certain people such as Molly Weasley who will be demanding their "fair share" based on the fact that since she lost both her parents in the first war, she was made an orphan. The fact that she was an adult and a married woman with one child and another on the way when her parents were caught in the wrong place at the wrong time will not be mentioned. She also lost her brothers as they were members of Dumbdamn's Order of the Phoenix and from what I have heard she is demanding restitution be given to her for the Dark Lord Potter murdering her son Ronald."

Rabastan realized where this was leading by adding, "So the bill is just a ruse to "legally" seize certain vaults in Gringotts, such as the Potter, Black, Lestrange and Longbottom vaults as well as the dissidents like the Headlys and Bones women?"

Bonecrusher said, "Of course, but it will not work. Dumbdamn and the Ministry know that it will not work but due to the _fair share distribution to widows and orphans_ , there will be a public outcry. Therefore another bill will be put before the Wizengamot and passed unanimously. The Ministry will then be authorized to enter the bank and 'legally seize the vaults' and naturally we Goblins will refuse and put up a fight."

"Then the next thing that will happen is another Goblin rebellion?" Harry asked.

"Yes, "Bonecrusher admitted. "There will be another – a last Goblin rebellion. Are you aware that the only Goblin rebellions have been in Britain? In other countries there have been disputes, a few skirmishes, the odd battle then a settlement and/or treaty. Only in Britain have there been _Goblin rebellions_."

"What will happen then?" Harry asked.

"It depends if we know the exact time of the attack. If we are surprised, those of us still in the bank will fight to the death. If we are forewarned and have had enough time to properly prepare, namely the complete evacuation of our women and children, we will spell the bank, the last of us will make our escape and as soon as the Ministry forces break through the doors, the bank will collapse on them and a controlled type of Goblin fire, similar to your fiend fire, will commence."

"But that will also destroy Diagon Alley and alert the Muggles."

"No it won't as it is a very controlled force which will just envelop the bank. If will destroy the building and crash down in the areas of our vaults and spread throughout our living quarters. An explanation has already been prepared for the Muggle government – something about a minor earthquake - I personally do not know nor do I care. Some shops closest to the bank will probably be destroyed but that will be the Ministry's fault."

"It will ruin your reputation throughout the Magical World."

"It will be viewed that way but only in Britain. The Goblin Nation has treaties with every country we conduct business in. We clearly state our banking policies, procedures, fees and penalties. We have been the only ones to establish a banking system in Britain and to issue a standard coinage. Goblins might not have the reputation for being 'the nicest' of magical beings, but we have honor and _**are fair in our dealings with wizards just as long as they are fair in their dealings with Goblins**_."

"Therefore, if the British Ministry attempts to seize the lawfully protected vaults in Gringotts London, it will be they who are guilty of committing a crime and breaking the current treaty. A copy of every treaty, agreement and contract between the Goblins and the British Ministry have been acknowledged and filed of record with each Magical government in Magical Europe, Africa and Asia as well as with the ICW since that organization's inception."

"We have taken no chances due to all the wars or 'rebellions' we have fought with the British. All the Magical governments in this side of the world know the true version of these 'rebellions' and they are but a footnote in their history books. Only in Britain is their side of the 'rebellions' taught almost exclusively and, among other things, that is why no other Magical country will accept a History of Magic OWL from Hogwarts. It does not each History of Magic but merely a history of magic in Britain and written with a bias slant."

"Only Britain has ever broken these treaties usually in an attempt to get total financial control of the country and to destroy or enslave British Goblins. Whether it was the official government or a powerful warlord, every "rebellion" has been started by wizards, not Goblins. We have been robbed constantly and since our honor and oaths make us responsible for the gold and valuables stored in our bank, British Gringotts has caused the entire Goblin Nation great losses in treasure and at times honor."

"But after the last 'rebellion' we finally invented the nearly unbreakable wards we currently have. No one has been able to break through these wards and…live. Well there was that 'incident' in 1991 where a break-in was attempted but failed."

Harry remembered exactly what break-in the Goblin was referring to. Were it not for the fact that Hagrid had removed the contents of the vault earlier that day, Voldemort might have been the first wizard to break these unbreakable wards and escape the Goblins.

While Bonecrusher was giving the history lesson to Harry and Rabastan, Bella had been unusually quiet. Bella was never silent as it was just her nature to have her say. She hadn't been able to keep her tongue in the presence of Voldemort who had to _silence_ her on many occasions. But now she said nothing and no one had noticed.

No Bella was doing a lot of thinking but now decided to interrupt. She already knew where Bonecrusher's history lesson was going. The Goblins were in the right not release any funds. Dumbledore would have the Ministry attempt to attack, they would fail, but war would be declared because once again the Goblins were rebelling. Then Dumbledore would go to the ICW in his capacity as its Head and demand this, that and the other thing.

He would accuse the Goblins of siding with the Dark Lord Harry Potter and by refusing to let the Ministry seize the vaults of known criminals and a Dark Lord the Goblins were not only aiding and abetting that Dark Lord, they were making the people of Magical Britain suffer undue hardships. Widows and orphans were in need and the Ministry had to have money to fight the new Dark Lord.

Dumbledore might get some votes in the ICW but definitely not enough to get his way with Gringotts. The Goblins Nation was just too powerful a force to put up with his manipulations. They had too many allies among the magical nations. Most importantly, the Goblins coined most of the money in the Magical World although the Asian countries and the Americas used their Muggle governments' money, they also used Goblin currencies.

But then Dumbledore could do one of two things. The first would be to make several lofty speeches on the world stage denouncing the Goblins for siding with and financing a Dark Lord, outlining the horrors of what this new Dark Lord was currently doing, was actually capable of doing and the consequences of what he eventually would do if people didn't rally to Dumbledore's side and leadership in his quest to defeat the Dark Lord Harry Voldemort, Jr.

In this way Dumbledore's crusade and agenda would be visible on the world stage – _**the entire Magical World stage**_. At the moment his crusade was only known in Europe and probably the northern parts of Africa. The larger American governments probably knew but most of their public didn't or couldn't care less if they did.

Also, Dumbledore could file a formal, perfectly legal complaint against the Goblins, which would also bring world attention, but there was always a slim chance that enough outrage and many "deals" could be done to force the Goblin Nation to make the British Gringotts branch keep the peace and just give in and let the vaults be seized. They knew that it would be a pyrrhic victory as most of the vaults Dumbledore craved were already beyond his reach.

Knowing the Goblins she doubted it, but with Dumbledore doing the manipulations and portraying Harry as Voldie, Jr., he just might be able to win this one in the hopes by the rest of the world that he would just shut up and leave them alone. After all, _he was an elderly wizard_ , so how much longer could he live?

Even if he appointed an heir, since he had no biological child or any known relatives except his childless younger brother, the heirs of "great men" rarely if ever lived up to the deeds of their fathers. So there would be hope by the world that after his death, his crusade would die out.

That would be the most logical and sensible thing Dumbdamn could do, or he could do a second thing. Ignore the laws, have Britain secede from the European Magical Union, declare martial law, take over Gringotts (no doubt he had a foolproof plan to do that) thus controlling the economy in Britain, force every wizard, witch and magical child and creature to swear the oath of allegiance to him and once complete and complete control was his, send his "missionaries" out into the world.

He probably wouldn't do that one unless he really had lost all sense of reason. Such a thing had happened to her Lord. Hopefully Dumbdamn would just DIE and do it soon.

But Bella had another idea and now decided to alert the others to something that they might have overlooked.

"Well don't we just have Harry take a heritage test? The 'good one' – you know the one which is irrefutable, lists everything in a person's heritage you would need to know, the one that Magic declares true and the Goblin Nation can and would give its sacred oath is true. At least that would show that Harry Potter isn't You-Know-Who, Jr."

"Also with this in hand the Head of the Goblin Nation – I don't know his name – could go before the EMU and the ICW and swear on Goblin Honor he witnessed Harry swearing an oath on his life and magic that he has not been, is not and doesn't intend to ever be a Dark Lord, didn't kill Weasley, commit or cause to be done any of the murders and atrocities that Dumbdamn has or will accuse him of, etc., etc., etc."

She looked at the Goblin and her two boys who just stared at her before sighing and saying, "Well it couldn't hurt!"

They all agreed with her.

Bella and Rabastan decided to get one done also as who knew perhaps between the three of them an heir could be found for the unclaimed vaults.

"James Potter used to brag that he was the heir to Gryffindor," Rabastan told Harry. "Can you imagine what wealth, what heirlooms could be found in that vault?"

"Well he had no proof," snapped Bella. "And if he was, the Potters would have claimed the vault and mingled it with their own."

"Being the Potter Account Manager, I may tell you that no, no Potter in the last three hundred years can claim being related to Gryffindor or any Founder. Some centuries ago a Potter heir did marry a known Gryffindor heir but they did not have any children. The Potter estate was inherited by the younger brother Richard and Charlus and James Potter are the direct descendants of Richard."

"Just so you know," Bonecrusher continued, "Lady Bella is correct in that any wealth or heirlooms of the Hogwarts founders would have been handed down directly to their children and their families. The Gringotts London Branch was founded and opened for business about several centuries after the founding of Hogwarts. Before that, everyone used Muggle coinage and stored their wealth in their homes. It took Gringotts a very long time to convince most of Magical Britain to keep their money in a bank."

"Another point of interest which the young lord might know due to his Muggle education, hard currency was not as common in centuries past especially when such peoples as the Vikings invaded Britain and demand tribute in gold and silver. It took much of what coinage there was available to pay off the Vikings. Then you had to have a mint to make coins, someone in power had to approve, the precious metals had to be provided – it was all very complicated."

"Also generally unknown was that the four founders used all of their personal wealth as well as donations and school fees for those who could afford it, to build and maintain the school. Any wealth acquired and attributed to any of the founders' offspring was earned separately by the children themselves."

"The Founders kept their children close to them and in turn the children were obliged to teach and/or work at the school. If a child wanted to earn their own money or have a different career other than teaching or working at Hogwarts, they had to leave. Girls could marry to get away from the school and male heirs usually left and sought employment elsewhere."

"If memory serves me, Hogwarts itself didn't have a vault until the 1400's and only because people sending their children to Hogwarts paid tuition through Gringotts. Also, some wizards left legacies to the school and instead of risking sending the money directly to Hogwarts it was deposited with Gringotts and placed in the Hogwarts vault. There were highway robbers a plenty in olden times and wizards committing robberies were quite common. That was the only real reason Hogwarts finally got a vault."

Curious, Harry asked, "So a Gryffindor descendent totally not connected in anyway with the school would open an account and people would think the vault had originally been Godric's vault."

"Yes, in fact at one time Gringotts London had seven vaults owned by a different Gryffindor descendent. But then a family dies out or only a female is left and her name changes upon marriage. That is what happened with the Gryffindor girl who married the Potter and had no children. She was the last of that name and what money she brought into her marriage stayed in the Gryffindor vault for 'appearances' as the plan had been that she would produce a Potter heir and then her second son would take the name Gryffindor and the line would continue. But it didn't work out the way it was planned and either Richard Potter or one of his children eventually closed the vault to get the money."

An appointment was made for the tests to be taken as a special potion had to be brewed and a Goblin made parchment used for this particular test. The three had their physicals pronouncing them in excellent health, although Harry was advised to continue taking his potions and adhere to the diet for another year "just to be safe."

Although his health had improved enough for Harry to officially take the tests for the Lordship rings again, just to be safe, Bonecrusher advised that Harry should wait until after the heritage test to see if he was eligible for another lordship.

Finally everything was ready and the three came to the bank to take the test.

Iron Warrior, the current Head of the Goblin Nation, had personally come to witness the testing. Bella had been correct in assuming that Dumbledore would bring the ICW into things after being once again thwarted by London Gringotts who still refused to budge on releasing the vaults into Ministry custody. An emergency meeting had been called by Dumbledore that very morning and would be taking place the next day. Armed with the results of the heritage test, Iron Warrior could use it to discredit Dumbledore at his very meeting.

The old Goblin looked forward to putting Dumbledore in his place before the assembled ICW. Hopefully he would give up his efforts to "steal from Gringotts" which was exactly what Dumbledore and the Ministry were trying to do.

The three assembled, their blood was separately drawn, mixed into the potion and then poured on their respective parchments. All they had to do was wait until the results showed their respective heritages.

Iron Warrior picked up Harry's parchment. He read it, seemed to freeze for a moment and read some more. He then handed the parchment to Bonecrusher. The stoic, tough as nails Goblin visibly paled.

Harry started to worry as did Rabastan. Rabastan never knew a Goblin could pale – from shock at least.

Finally Bella couldn't stand it had reached for the parchment. Bonecrusher handed it to her. Bella looked at it. She then paled. She then looked up at Harry, looked back to the parchment and seemed to be reading something again.

She then promptly fainted.

Everything belongs to JKRowling except the mad plots and the occasional character I have added. I make no money on this and just write to express my warped sense of imagination.

Chapter 9 – Bah Humbug Holidays

Harry took the tests for the Potter and Black rings. He passed in fine health.

Rabastan had been pleasantly surprised when he found out that he was able to claim one of the smaller vaults which still remained at Gringotts London. It didn't even have to be switched, just the contents transferred to his account in Vienna. It didn't contain much as there had been no investments authorized for centuries so it had remained static. However, 22,000 galleons, 9 sickles and 4 knuts was a respectable sum. Hell the Weasleys would have jumped at the amount and considered themselves flushed. There were two paintings, some silver goblets, a few dozen books and other odds and ends also contained in the vault and it was one less vault the Ministry could steal.

Before Harry went to originally claim the rings or before the heritage tests were decided to be taken, Bella and Rabastan thought it would be a good idea to each separately adopt Harry as their son. This way if ever asked to swear an oath, they could truthfully say, "he is my son" and Harry could say "she is my mother" and "he is my father" and all would be well in the universe.

Now the adoption would not adversely affect Harry's other heritages in all way. This type of adoption was common among old Pureblood houses. It was much like Sirius becoming Harry's godfather. Also the way it was going to be done was through their new, legal, official Muggle names. Therefore, even though Bella and Rabastan were not married to each other, they were still known as Brenda Ruth Ford-Hill and Steven Matthew Ford-Hill, mother and father, respectively, of Geoffrey Thomas Ford-Hill.

Yep, all nice, neat and tidy, perfectly legal, good to make a will legal (be it Muggle or Magical), etc.

Yep, Happy Christmas, the gift that keeps giving, all nice, neat and tidy.

Everybody should be happy, right! Wrong! Harry and Rabastan were not happy (except for the Muggle-name adoption which had been already planned and known about), they were NERVOUS. And they had a right to be.

Bella wouldn't show them the parchment or even say what it revealed. Neither would Iron Warrior or Bonecrusher. Rabastan had objected but was cowed with a severe glare by Iron Warrior. Iron Warrior excused himself because he had to prepare for the ICW meeting. The only thing he said before leaving was, "You will be glad to know that your mother was not Voldemort's daughter."

Although that was wonderful to know (not that Harry had had any doubt) it still didn't explain the reactions of the Goblin and especially Bella. When Harry asked "so anything interesting, like a legacy or something?"

All Bella would say was "Lots of interesting things…nothing you would want to know about at least not today." And then she would say no more.

After they returned to the villa Rabastan was confident that he would find out and then tell Harry. Well he was wrong as Bella would only shake her head and mumble a lot.

"Well at least your mother wasn't the Dark Lord's daughter," Rabastan commented. "So let's not worry about it now as it is the holidays and we have a ball to go to tomorrow night. Bella will tell us when she is ready. If she hasn't by Twelfth Night, then we'll use the Veritaserum which I'll be teaching you to make tomorrow and guess who we'll test it on?"

So the next day was spent relaxing, brewing the Veritaserum on the sly and getting ready for the ball or as Bella had termed it when they had received the invitation, "your official debut into society."

The ball was being given by the highest ranking noble in the area. He was giving his usual Christmas ball in honor of another noble who he was acquainted with and who was much higher up in Italian society than he was. Nothing like buttering up one's better. Count Carlo Orsini had recently re-married and to very beautiful woman from what Ruth's new friends told her.

"She is very high up in the social scale of Europe, or so I am told, but usually she limits herself to certain places like Vienna, Geneva, Monaco – places like that and is rarely in Italy unless to do some shopping in Milan," Ruth's friend Gianna told her.

Cosima, Ruth's other friend, had just recently found out more about the mysterious Ilaria. Besides being very beautiful she was a widow. She had also lost her only son, a mere schoolboy who had died last year at his school.

"No one knows how old he was, what he died from or even what his name was, only that he died shortly after his mama married Count Orsini. It is said no one knows the real story except the Count and he defends his new bride's request that she not be asked as 'it is too painful' and the Count doesn't want to risk her health – she is six months pregnant you know."

"No, I did not know that," Gianna said. Ruth let out a slight whimper at the mention of "six months pregnant" and her friends realized that was how far along dear Ruth was when….she was in the accident.

Ruth quickly took hold of herself before her friends could murmur their sympathy by saying, "Then we must say a lot of prayers for the poor woman's safe delivery of a healthy baby, especially since she just lost her only child so recently. Although I am Church of England, when we go to Rome in January to see the Vatican, I'll personally light some candles for her – will that work?"

Her friends agreed that it would fine and very thoughtful and the subject was changed to the dresses they would be wearing and the other parties that were being held during the holidays.

It was agreed by all their "friends" and neighbors in the area that the Ford-Hills were a good looking family, despite their being British. They even had very good teeth as one nasty matriarch pointed out on more than one occasion. Steven Ford-Hill was very handsome and reminded her of someone she had once known but she could never remember who.

They arrived at the ball all dressed up in their new finery. They were received by their host and hostess then left to mingle in the crowd. The guests of honor were not seen until about an hour and a half after the ball officially opened. Besides being fashionably late, the excuse was also that the Countess was feeling a bit off and had to gather her strength.

Cosima announced that naturally the Countess would not be dancing but would be "holding court" at the host's table. "I heard from a very reliable source that our host will be escorting certain people over to personally meet the Count and Countess. I hope that I will be one of them."

More time passed and poor Cosima had so far not gotten her wish, although her husband had managed to inch his way over to the table to get a decent look at the Countess. His verdict was that she was even more incredibly beautiful the closer you got to her and he had heard her laughter and "it was like crystal pieces dropping gently into a silver goblet."

The three Ford-Hills couldn't care less about the Countess as they were too busy having a good time. Two years ago if someone had told Bella that she would not only be talking to Muggles – and by talking it meant talking not hurling curses or insults at them – let alone dancing, well she would have thrown a Cruciatus at them. But she was in hiding and had a part to play and she had been well brought up and knew how to "work a room" and impress people.

So had Rabastan and between the two of them they had given Harry lessons on how to behave.

So the Ford-Hills were to be found either dancing or chatting amicably and intelligently and in general being charming. And that was what got them in trouble.

Now you might ask, how does being physical attractive, a good conversationalist, mannerly and charming get one into trouble? Well let's not forget that despite all the things which had happened in the positive in the last 18 months or so, such as the escape, point of view corrections, surgeries, health regained, education, adoptions, inheritances, careful planning and even the name and lifestyle changes, Geoffrey Thomas Ford-Hill was and would always remain Harry James Potter and since when did Harry James Potter ever get a break.

Not tonight. Geoff had been having a very good time. He met several new acquaintances of the female variety closer to his age. It was discovered that he was a good dancer for a supposedly geeky British boy. He was very polite, respectful and a good conversationalist to both the girls and the older women who chaperoned them.

But the most noticeable thing about the young man was his luscious good looks. He was damn handsome with his good posture, now evident health and fine physique, his excellent complexion, beautiful ebony black hair which just demanded to have a girl (or woman) run their fingers through those locks, and most important – those eyes. Those beautiful almond-shaped bluish-green eyes that made one melt when one looked into them. Sigh!

He resembled his mother more than his father. But then again his mother was still a very beautiful woman. This was the first time that many of the elite society of the area had gotten a really good look at the family. The mother had to be over forty but still retained an excellent figure, had a porcelain complexion, silky soft hair which although done in an upsweep coiffure and small curls had charmingly escaped its confines and gave her a slightly more youthful look.

The woman had to be from a very good family back in Britain, as it was evident she had been well brought up and knew how to behave, how to charm, how to seduce…or at least several of the males, both young and old present at the ball hoped so.

The husband was equally as good, showed a proper breeding as well as being good looking. His one fault was he reminded you of someone but you couldn't think who. It was maddening.

If a poll was to be taken as to who were the most interesting persons present – besides the Count and Countess – the Ford-Hills would have won the vote. It was only logical that the family would be introduced to the Orsinis.

Thus their host approached them and escorted them over to meet his guests of honor. Poor Cosima nearly swooned, but was pacified that at least she would get the verdict and the gossip as soon possible from her friend.

The Countess had grown tired of sitting and was now standing when the Ford-Hills were presented to her. As they neared the woman both Bella and Rabastan instantly recognized her. Due to their upbringing they were quickly able to mask their surprise and return to being the proper Ford-Hills.

"That damn slutty bitch," thought Bella. "Ilaria," thought Rabastan. "It just had to be Ilaria Zabini. Who'd have thought she would lower herself to consort with Muggles, even rich ones. Guess between what is going on back in England and considering her reputation, she was running out of rich Purebloods to marry. Wonder how long the Muggle will last?"

Harry didn't know the woman from Eve. He just saw a very beautiful woman of undetermined age (at least he couldn't determine her age) who was heavily pregnant so she was automatically off limits in his mind as being desirable as…well she was going to be somebody's mother very soon. So Geoff smiled when he was introduced to her.

Her reaction had been entirely different. A slim, well-manicured, bejeweled hand shot out and grabbed his face. She stared brazenly at him, her eyes wide not with terror as would be said by some the next day, but in shock.

Harry stood stock still not knowing what was happening. Then the Countess found her voice and mumbled, "Those eyes, the very same eyes." before she gracefully fainted against her husband. A slight panic broke out as everyone was concerned for the Countess. Rabastan quickly grabbed Harry's arm and led him away from the scene as soon as possible. The three then made their escape from the area as soon as possible.

Both Cosima and Gianna all but pounced on the trio as they hastily made their way trying to leave the ballroom.

"I don't know what happened," Ruth told her eager friends. "She grabbed Geoff's face, mumbled something and then fainted."

Since the entire assembly was in an uproar, Steven suggested they leave as quickly as possible. The eldest son of their host was found, the awkwardness of the situation was explained to him and Steven felt that it would be better if his family left. So he thanked the host's son, etc. and the trio fled home.

Well the next day the gossip was flying around faster than Harry's Firebolt. Since no reason was given for the Countess fainting, it was the duty of all persons to think up a reason. All that was really known was that she grabbed the young Ford-Hill roughly by the face and said something about his eyes. She then fainted and could not be revived for over an hour at which time she had to take to her bed. The ball ended early shortly thereafter.

Once they were back in the safety of their home, Bella and Rabastan told Harry who the woman was. Harry, of course, knew who Blaize Zabini was and had even heard of his mother's reputation, but never really thought about it. All he remarked about was "Blaize was made Head Boy instead of Ron so as far as we know he is still alive."

"Yes, but no doubt Blaize was not allowed to leave Hogwarts last year because from what I know about Ilaria Zabini, she would never swear an oath to anybody – especially Dumbledore. She was one of _**those people**_ ," spat Bella, "Who wouldn't take our Lord's mark. She gave a minimum of assistance but only enough to get by. She spent most of her time out of Britain to avoid getting any more involved."

"It always worked out well for her," added Rabastan. "Our Lord allowed her more leeway as he had plans for her. Unfortunately he never got to utilize her 'talents' but it was understood that she was 'on call' and would come ASAP when and if the Dark Lord summoned her."

"And she was older than she looked," Bella added spitefully. "It was a little known fact – but we Black girls knew it – that Ilaria Zabini is part succubus! Her grandmother is a full-blown one so that makes dear Ilaria a quarter."

"Is that why she is known as a femme fatale and a black widow?" asked Harry.

"Oh yes," said Rabastan. "And as dear Ruthie said, she is older than she looks. She didn't attend Hogwarts…"

"Beauxbatons, she went there," added a still spitting Bella.

"Whatever. I just know she didn't go to Hogwarts. But Rudolphus spent a summer the year before he graduated at our mother's godmother's estate near Monaco. Mother wanted Rudolphus to marry her godmother's granddaughter so they threw the two of them together that summer. It was said that Ilaria had been out of school for a year or two when she met Rudolphus at a ball and…"

"And he thought her the most beautiful creature in the world. Well she was a creature all right and should have been put down…"

"Bella, it's my story."

"Bella is just jealous because all woman are jealous of a succubus – even a quarter breed like Ilaria. Now what we have to figure out is why she fainted when she saw you."

"I already know why," said Bella.

"Really, well then why don't you enlighten us Ruthie dear?"

Bella only glared at Rabastan but it was evident that she was avoiding looking at Harry, so Harry asked, "Spill it Mummy."

"Kreacher," she yelled instead. The old elf popped in and was told to bring the good scotch whiskey and three glasses. He popped out then quickly back with the request.

"That bad," asked Harry looking at the scotch and the glasses. If he was being given a drink things must be really bad especially since Bella preferred brandy or cheap Muggle gin if she wanted to drown her sorrows.

The liquor was poured and sips taken – or a good strong gulp in Bella's case. Apparently a good gulp wasn't enough so she chugged down the rest of it and poured another glassful.

Finally she started. "Remember long ago when I said you had eyes that were enticing?"

"Sort of."

"Well actually not only were they enticing but seductive…very seductive. I thought I had seen eyes like that once before but I simply couldn't remember where. I remember now. I was a small girl, about five or six and father was having one of his business meetings and many wizards came to our summer house. We girls were all there because Mother had just given birth to Narcissa a few months before and was still recovering and we were told to behave and keep out of sight."

One of the guests at the meeting was a man I didn't know. He was a very attractive man. He was tall, slim but with a healthy almost athletic build, had beautiful ebony black hair which had a slight wave to it, a pale complexion and the most beautiful almond-shaped blue-green eyes. In fact, they were the most beautiful eyes I have ever seen and hadn't seen since….well since the glamour came off you and your eyes became what they are now."

She stopped talking and just stared at Harry who was suddenly very uncomfortable.

"So are you trying to tell me," he began, "that I have the same eyes as this guy you saw when you were a kid, and Mrs. Zabini might have been the girlfriend – or lover – of this guy and she saw my eyes and recognized…"

"NO. THAT IS NOT WHAT I AM TRYING TO SAY." She took another gulp and started up again. "She knew him - knew him when he still had those eyes. She saw you tonight. She did stare at you briefly before looking into your eyes and then recognized your looks and those unique eyes."

"HELL NO!" yelled Rabastan. He chugged down the remainder of his scotch then poured a full glass and started guzzling that down mumbling, "hell no, hell no, ooohhh lordy hell no" while drinking.

While Bella calmed down a bit Harry became more agitated.

"The next time if saw the man he was older – well so was I. However he had changed some. He was still a very handsome and enticing man but now he was more…seductive. Wizards as well as witches felt it. He had a few silver hairs running through his hair but still had a youthful look. But his eyes…they had changed…in their color."

"Mummy, please don't tell me they were… _a more unique color_."

"Okay I won't tell you - about the color."

Harry had a very bad feeling what she was going to say next so he braced himself with the scotch. He was going to be so sick tomorrow.

"Remember when Iron Warrior told you that your Mother was not the Dark Lord's daughter?"

"Yes."

"Well he was right, she wasn't his daughter. She was his granddaughter."

Bella braced herself for the scream, the cry, the temper tantrum, the breaking up of the furniture and perhaps a few hexes and curses being thrown. But Harry said or did nothing. He just looked at her.

Rabastan had stopped his guzzling and Bella knew she had imbibed way too much. Harry had stopped drinking also. All he did was compose himself, putting in place the emotionless Pureblood mask which Bella and Rabastan had schooled him in. Harry was in deep thought but then he finally spoke.

"So does this mean that beside me being Voldie's great grandson, my obnoxious cousin Dudley is too?"

Bella and Rabastan were shocked. Of all the things he could have said or asked about this was what he wanted to know. But Bella snapped out of it and said, "No. Your mother and aunt were half- sisters. It's too long and confusing a story to tell you about right now but I will explain it all in detail once we've slept on it."

"Once we've slept on it," said Harry dangerously cold. "While I am thoroughly delighted not only on behalf of myself, Great Granddaddy and you two that Dudders is not a fellow heir, I think that a little bit more information is needed at the moment before we sleep on it."

"I don't think that is such a good idea considering the shock you've had and all the booze we've all drunk."

"WELL. !" he spat out. "For some reason I am completely wide awake now and it's not like things could get worse that I could be more shocked than I am now."

"Weellll, actually it could and does."

"How?"

"The heritage parchment revealed several other…disturbing revelations concerning your heritage."

"WHAT CAN BE MORE DISTURBING THAN FINDING OUT I'M RELATED TO VOLDEMORT AND HAVING DUMBLEDORE SOMEHOW KNOW ABOUT IT?"

"Quite a lot actually. I still advise we all calm down and sleep on it."

"NO!"

"I'll tell you what. I'll give you an itsy bit of information without divulging too much and you can decide. Deal?"

"Okay. What 'disturbing crumb' of information will upset me more than finding out about Voldie being my Great Granddad?"

"Let's say you are definitely not going to like hearing who Great Granny is. I know I didn't and I usually accept any decision our Lord made but what was he thinking when he humped her? It boggles the mind. And then it only gets worse to the point of being horrifying. So any questions?"

"I have one," said Rabastan who now seemed surprisingly sober considering all that he had drunk at the ball and since they arrived home.

 _ **"WHY THE HELL ARE WE SITTING AROUND HERE DRINKING AND ANNOYING ONE ANOTHER WHEN WE SHOULD BE FLEEING FOR OUR LIVES?"**_

"What do you mean by that?" asked a confused Bella.

Rabastan just glad before giving them a good reason.

"For a start, Ilaria Zabini is many things but stupid is definitely not one of them. She is part succubus which is not a good reference any way you look at it, she is very manipulative, selfish, egotistical, is a known black widow, and it is evident since she has married a Muggle – a rich one but a Muggle – that she is also hiding from the Magical World."

"The fact that she is pregnant by this Muggle shows that she has decided to write-off and abandoned her own son. Just so you know Harry, a succubus needs to have an heir to pass on something but don't ask me what. To put it bluntly, she is not a nice woman."

"Considering her age and proclivity for the male sex, she has no doubt met the Dark Lord when he was young enough to recognize that Harry resembles him, especially his very rare eyes. Now she knows that Harry has escaped from Azkaban and Dumbledore has proclaimed him not only a Dark Lord but has told the world that he is our Lord's grandson."

He paused for a breath. "She meets someone the appropriate age to be Harry Dark Lord (the latest name he was being called). He is the very image of the Dark Lord as a young man. He is accompanied by 'his parents' no doubt Bellatrix and Rabastan Lestrange under heavy glamours. Now does Ilaria Zabini keep her big mouth shut or does she alert the authorities allowing them to capture us and earning herself fame, glory and the large reward that someone has probably offered for our capture? At the very least she just might get her son back."

Silence reigned for about the five seconds it took for Rabastan's logic to sink in. Then the screaming started. Okay only Bella screamed but Harry might have if he had thought about it.

"Kreacher, Trudy" she yelled. Both elves popped into the room and Bella started shouting out orders. "Kreacher – pack all of the household things we bought and shrink them. Trudy – pack all our clothes and personal belongings. Rabastan and Harry – get us those sobriety potions you made for the holidays, some pepper up potions and calming draughts then pack up all the potion supplies and Harry's books. I'll pack up the Black property…No I won't. Harry you pack the Black property while I write our good-bye excuse letters."

"Our good-bye excuse letters?"

"Yes our good-bye we-all-feel-guilty-and-are-afraid-the-Countess-will-have-a-miscarriage-and-I-couldn't-live-with-myself-if-that-happened-and-so-I-don't-want-to-know-if-it-happened-you-know-the-reason-why-so-we-are-leaving-so-I-don't-have-another-nervous-breakdown letter. Now hurry up as it is almost dawn and we have to get out of town fast."

While the others did the packing up, Bella wrote a very carefully-worded letter to Gianna and Cosima. The potions were taken, the shrunken possessions placed in the car which Steven glamoured to look like a completely different make and model and changed the license plate number. Then the three Ford-Hills cast glamours on themselves and gave the elves further orders.

Trudy was to see that the letter was hand-delivered first thing that morning. Then both elves were to place themselves under a glamour and pretend to be members of a cleaning service come in to clean the house. If anyone came looking for the Ford-Hills – for any reason - they were to be told that the Ford-Hills left as per what Bella wrote in the letter. In the meantime, the villa was to be completely cleaned and all traces of DNA (or its magical equivalent) was to be removed so that they could not be tracked.

Because he was the sneakiest of the elves Kreacher was to disillusion himself, find Ilaria Zabini and see what she was doing. If he found out that she had contacted anyone he was to see if he could prevent it and if not, find out who she had notified. The elves would be called as soon as the family reached a safe place. By then plans would have been made and the elves would be given further orders.

Dawn was rising when they left the Lake area. They fueled up and drove towards Switzerland. It was December 24th so they couldn't travel by car too far due to the holidays. It was decided they would drive to a Swiss ski resort and see if they could get some last minute reservations.

The scenario would be that they were a family who were originally spending the holidays with relatives near Monaco but they had not been there a day when an argument had broken out, nasty, hurtful words had been said by a drunken in-law and there was nothing to do but leave and try to salvage their holiday.

As they had never been skiing before they decided to go to Switzerland and try their luck. They had managed to find a respectable ski resort with some vacancies. They had enough time to buy some ski togs to fit in better with the other residents. Rabastan and Harry knew that Bella just wanted to buy clothes as it made her feel better and she was very upset and worried.

Once they were settled in their rooms they could breathe easier and take stock of what happened in the past 24 hours. It could be said that they panicked. Well they had.

They had recognized her but would probably be able to avoid her in the future if she had not recognized the young Dark Lord when she saw Harry. Since it had shocked her they were now all at risk.

Had it been the old Bella, she would have quietly snuck away, disillusioned herself, found out where the Countess was, and killed her. She could have used a heart-stopping curse and the Muggles would not have been the wiser. Many women had complications during a pregnancy and it would have been seen as a tragic twist of fate or the will of God.

But right now she was the new Bella – and had Harry to think about and take care of. She finally had a child to raise and she didn't want to have him think ill of her.

That was why they had fled blindly into the dawn. Now that they were safe, at least for the moment, they could plan.

They placed silencing charms on the lodge suite and summoned the elves. The letter apparently worked as no one had come to the villa. Trudy cleaned the house until it sparkled while Kreacher spied on Ilaria Zabini. According to him, the woman had no elf glamoured as a human servant and he could find no trace of magic at the villa. As far as he knew, she was indeed living as a Muggle.

"But Kreacher notices the siren witch is thinking all day, like she has to make a decision."

"She probably is weighing all her options," said Rabastan.

"What does she know about us and what is she saying about why she fainted?" asked Bella.

"She says boy had eyes like her first love who died before they could marry and all believe that. Kreacher cannot read witches thoughts."

It was decided to send Trudy back to spy on Ilaria while Kreacher served them at the hotel.

"How long will it take you to brew some Veritaserum?" asked Bella.

"Already done," replied Harry.

The three were staying awake thanks to pepper-up potions and adrenalin. They had been up for nearly 40 hours and Christmas Day was just mere hours away. Not that they had any plans to celebrate and who felt like opening presents now.

"I don't know about you two, but as exhausted as I am, I couldn't sleep not knowing just how much she knows or guesses and especially what she is planning. Since we have the Veritaserum, and she is probably sleeping, why don't we have Trudy bring her here and dose her with the Veritaserum?"

They all agreed with Bella and within a half hour Ilaria Zabini woke up from a deep sleep as she felt something similar to apparation. The next thing she knew, she was in a darken room and was quickly bound to a chair and something was being forced down her throat. She lost her sense of control as the Veritaserum took effect and then the questions started.

"What is your name?"

"Ilaria Perlita Zabini."

"What is your real age?" asked a spiteful Bella.

The woman was actually trying to fight telling the truth before finally saying, "53 and ¾ years."

"Who did you think that Ford-Hill boy was and why did you faint when you saw his eyes?"

"He looked almost exactly like the Dark Lord You-Know-Who, especially those eyes. I believe he must be Harry Potter because Dumbledore did announce that Potter was the grandson of You-Know-Who so the boy could be Potter. I've never saw the boy in person but my son Blaize says that except for his green eyes, the boy's nothing special to look at, dresses in rags, apparently knows nothing about his heritage and place in society, is average in class and completely ruled and led around by a Weasley and a Mudblood girl."

"Is your son Blaize dead or have you just abandoned him so you wouldn't have to take the oath of allegiance to Dumbledore?"

"Blaize is alive, but I had to abandon him because there is no way that I will obey ANY MAN especially the likes of Dumbledore. I either had to take the oath to get my son back or leave him. So I left him."

"And you married that Muggle to hide in the Muggle world and get yourself an heir."

"Yes."

"Why do you need an heir?"

"All succubuses need an heir to carry on our unique magic. It keeps us centered so that we don't lose our sense of self in sex. We do need to have a lot of sex to keep our looks and youth and to enhance our magic but sometimes we get carried away and overdo it and use up our life force too soon. I was considering having another child anyway as Blaize is an adult now and his presence advertises my age. Can't have that now can I?"

"So since you think the Ford-Hill boy was Harry Potter, who do you think his parents are?"

"It has to be Bellatrix and the Lestrange who escaped. I can't remember if it was her husband or his brother, but they escaped with him and they were all members of that Inner Circle."

"Were you planning on telling anyone of your suspicions?"

"Of course, I would be a fool not to."

"Who and when were you planning on telling?"

"Well I wanted to get more information before I decided. Our hostess was having a tea on the 27th mostly for the old hags to gossip, find out who got engaged, who received the best gifts, things like that. I was going to have her invite you so that I could check you for glamours or at least magic. I must confess your glamours are excellent. I know you must look horrid owing to all the time you spent in Azkaban, but if you are also hiding in the Muggle world you just can't go around scaring them by showing your real looks can you?"

Whether she knew it or not Ilaria Zabini was very close to getting herself badly hexed. Harry thought she must be a real bitch if she would insult somebody while under Veritaserum. Usually people who had been dosed fought it as much as they could and no one with sense would volunteer extra information. So the witch was either a fool, which Harry doubted, or meaner than Pansy Parkinson or the Ravenclaw girls who tortured Luna.

"And once you got your information what were you going to do?"

"Decide who to tell. I could acquire a lot of prestige, status and most important, lots and lots of money."

"Who would be the best person? Give us names."

"Well there is Cardinal Ponzi at the Vatican. He is a wizard and the liaison between the Magical World and the Catholic Church. He was asking about Harry Potter prior to Dumbledore's announcement. He is letting it be known that it would benefit a wizard or witch or even a Squib if they could produce Harry Potter or at least reveal his whereabouts. The sum of 10,000 galleons has been mentioned but more could be bargained for I am sure."

"Who else?"

"The Diefenbaker Brothers. Helmet Diefenbaker is the current German Minister of Magic and one of Dumbledore's most vicious critics. They absolutely loathe each other and his brother Dieter is the German representative in the ICW. He is constantly being dismissed as a nonentity and humiliated by Dumbledore and rumor has it the brothers would like nothing more than to see Dumbledore die of old age – soon."

"Anyone else?"

"Oh lots more but I can't remember the more important names at the moment. I would need to contact my lawyer and have him find out?"

"Wouldn't you be afraid we would leave?"

"Of course not, once I determined if it was really Harry Potter I would have some of my people capture him and hold the three of you a lot more securely until I decided the best person to turn you over to."

"So you wouldn't give us to Dumbledore?"

"Probably not as I still wouldn't get my Blaize back. I heard that no one can graduate or even leave the school for any reason unless they take the oath so for all intents and purposes he is lost to me. Besides whatever Dumbledore would promise me, especially if it was money, he would double-cross me, anyone who deals with Dumbledore knows that."

"Couldn't you get what you want first or make Dumbledore swear an oath to you to keep his word?"

Ilaria laughed at that. "Dumbledore would never let himself get trapped like that. He has spies everywhere and will eventually find out I had Potter. He would be scheming to take Potter from my custody. His pawns and minions blindly do his bidding and if my poor Blaize was let out it would probably be because he had to steal Potter and take him to Dumbledore."

A different voice asked a question. "Wouldn't you care that Harry Potter would probably be killed by whoever you 'sold' him to, especially if it was Dumbledore?"

Another laugh as she answered, "Of course not. That is none of my concern. I do what is best for me, no one else."

"Definitely not Blaize now but what about the child you are carrying? Would you be concerned about him or her? Would you make sacrifices for him or her?"

"It's a she and she's magical and should have enough of my heritage to continue my line properly."

"But would you make sacrifices for her?"

"Up to a point. As a succubus I can birth children almost until I die of old age. If necessary I can always have another child."

"It is said that you have had something to do with the untimely deaths of your prior husbands, even Blaize's father. Is that true?"

"Let's just say I am not a one-man woman. Being part succubus I need a _**lot of sex**_. None of them could really keep up with me. They would wear out too quickly and when I got bored, and the Will was made out enough in my favor, well let's just say, they died but they enjoyed doing it.

"What about your current husband? Are you planning his demise?"

"Not planning, just knowing it will happen. He is a Muggle after all, in his middle fifties and completely enraptured with me. We spent the entire day of the ball having sex, stopping only for lunch and then to get ready for the ball. Once I get pregnant I do slow up and that is probably the only reason he is still alive. However, I estimate that a few months after the child is born he will follow the same fate as my other husbands."

"Then it's off again looking for another one?" Bella asked.

"Of course. I usually take several lovers until I find a proper husband. Men just can't resist me, and I practically have to beat them off. But the likes of you wouldn't know anything about that now would you."

Once again Harry quickly interrupted before Bella could hex the witch. "Do you believe that Harry Potter would retaliate against you, hurt you or even kill you?"

She laughed again before replying. "Of course not. He is a complete Gryffindor fool and even if he is a relative of the Dark Lord, he has been too humbled, molded and indoctrinated by Dumbledore to do anything, anything at all. If you are Harry Potter, and I believe you truly are, you and those two…lackeys…have just been hiding, cowering in your shoes, running from Dumbledore who will catch you in the end."

"And you don't care?"

"No. You are going to die anyway and the only thing I care about is me getting my reward out of this business. Whether I am paid in money, jewels, or my choice of priceless magical artifacts, ' . . . .BLAIZE. Besides, I am a pregnant woman and you wouldn't allow anything to happen to me or my unborn child, would you now you little Half-blood son of a Mudblood whore."

'Well,' thought Harry to himself. 'If this woman wasn't so pretty and a succubus besides, she wouldn't have anything going for her or even a single admirer with that attitude. BITCH!

"The Veritaserum is wearing off," Rabastan warned. "Ask quickly if you have any more."

Bella had to satisfy her curiosity. "Why didn't you ever try to seduce the Dark Lord?"

The succubus answered in an angry voice, saying "I did, but he spurned me – ME. HE SPURNED ME! My only solace was that he was probably a homosexual, as that HAD TO BE THE ONLY REASON FOR ANY MAN TO REJECT ME."

Rabastan took hold of Bella so that she wouldn't curse the bitch. It was then that the Veritaserum began to wear off. Ilaria shook her head as if trying to clear her mind. She then looked out into the darken room where her questioners stood out of sight and smiled. Even on such a lovely face the smile was ugly.

"You are not going to kill me or my child are you?"

"No."

"I have your word Dark Lord Harry?"

"Yes, but I recently heard I am now being called Harry Dark Lord."

"Well then little, foolish Gryffindor, you better start running. Run, run, run, run as fast and as long as you can because the big bad Dumbledore is going to get you" she laughed slightly.

From the darkness came a voice. "Just because I am not going to kill you or your child, doesn't mean I'm not going to do anything to you."

Ilaria stiffened than relaxed. This was Harry Potter after all. So it was obvious that she was going to be obliviated and returned unharmed to the luxurious life she lived. She wouldn't get any monetary benefit from the situation but she wouldn't be harmed in any way either. But the experience hadn't been a total loss as she had gotten to throw a few insults at another woman, whose natural beauty, it was once said, rivaled her own, as well as inciting fear in the hearts of three fearless magicals.

"Bella, I can't remember what it is called, but I'm sure you would be happy to cast that curse that places someone in a permanent, irrevocable coma – until death overtakes them."

"Why yes my Lord, I would consider it an honor…and a pleasure."

"YOU SWORE YOU WOULDN'T HARM ME OR MY BABY."

"I said I wouldn't KILL. You do have to be punished for your plans. I can't allow you to get off scot free. That wouldn't be very dark lordish of me now would it?"

"But, but – my baby" wailed the now desperate witch, hoping the boy would be stupid enough to grant pity.

"It will be only you who will be in the coma, not the baby. You will be returned to the villa and found to have slipped into a coma during the night. You will be kept alive on what the Muggles call life support so that your baby can finish developing and be born."

"Your loving husband has the option of keeping you alive indefinitely should he so choose in the hope that someday you will recover. Or, once the child is born, he can choose to take you off life support so that nature can take its course. It will be he, on the advice of your doctors and maybe his priest, who will make that decision."

"And as for we three, well, we won't know and won't care. Happy Christmas!"

Ilaria Zabini would have screamed had she not been quickly silenced by Harry. Bella gleefully cast that dark spell on the nasty witch. She was then taken back by Trudy who, disillusioned, stayed on to view the events of that Christmas Day.

Everything happened as Harry had predicted. After the baby was born, Count Orsini let his darling, beautiful wife live on for another year until he at last gave in to the advice of his two sons from his first marriage. They wanted him to get on with his life and rise and enjoy his baby daughter. He decided it was selfish of him to deny the child the love of a mother as he had recently found comfort in a lonely childless widow. She just happened to still be beautiful, was very wealthy and had always wanted a child of her own. So things worked out very well for all concerned.

Except for Ilaria Zabini, but such things should happen to all nasty bitches.

Everything belongs to JKRowling except the mad plots and the occasional character I have added. I make no money on this and just write to express my warped sense of imagination.

Chapter 10 – A Bad, Belligerent Boxing Day

After taking care of "the problem" the Ford-Hills fell into an exhausted sleep. They didn't awake until the late afternoon of Christmas Day. There was nothing to do but dress up for and take Christmas dinner in the lodge's dining room.

They came for the first sitting with the intention of eating as much as possible as they had been just eating on the run and room service the night before. The menu was adequate and there was the requisite Christmas dinner special.

Originally the Ford-Hills were planning on having onion soup, a special salad of Ruth's invention, a standing rib roast, buttered parsley roasted potatoes, asparagus, braised leeks, and green beans almandine with an old-fashioned British plum pudding with hard sauce courtesy of Kreacher. Now they had a choice of roasted turkey or roasted goose, but the latter had to be pre-ordered and cost extra. The usual restaurant vegetables were to be had and the special Christmas desserts of the region completed the "special" but none tempted the appetite of family.

Just to be spiteful if only to the Christmas season, Ruth ordered a prawn cocktail, some sort of chicken soup, the fish of the day, rice, peas and chocolate mousse cake. She also ordered and claimed for her use only a bottle of white wine and spent the dinner mumbling bah humbug. Steven and Geoff just had the special because they got a lot of food, but opted for the prawn cocktails which weren't in the special. It end up they paid a lot of money for a mediocre Christmas dinner.

After eating there was really not much for them to do except go back to their room and watch TV. Naturally it being the holiday season there was nothing worth watching. They were too depressed and still too exhausted to do anything else and Geoff resorted to doing some school assignments.

It was just a horrible Christmas for them but others of their acquaintance were having a much worst one.

For example, back at Hogwarts the Christmas feast was excellent as always. The general mood was downright sad. Once again about 90% of the student body had 'elected' to stay at Hogwarts for the holidays. All Christmas gifts had to be sent and received at the school no later than December 20th so that they could be checked for traps, curses, hexes, dark spells, etc., since "Harry Dark Lord" had proven he could arrange for murders in the school and the benevolent Headmaster feared for the students' safety and well-being.

The ridiculous Harry Dark Lord title had been given to Potter by the _Daily Prophet_ when the other one which Dumbledore wanted Potter to be known as - Harry Voldemort - just didn't catch on.

In reality, the gift checking was not because of Harry Dark Lord but because there were still many desperate parents hoping to send their children comfort and/or plan a futile escape. And there had been two successful escapes - and three failed ones.

Despite the "murder" of Ron Weasley, Hermione Granger's life had not improved. In fact, it had gotten worse. Molly Weasley wanted someone to pay for her Ronnie's death. Although she would have gladly accepted a full vault, it wouldn't have been enough. She wanted _someone_ to suffer physical and mental pain. She wasn't going to get a vault in compensation because, as Dumbledore had sadly explained, it was the Goblins' fault, but she was getting the suffering she requested.

Hermione Granger's mistake had been that she had survived. "Harry Dark Lord" succeeded in killing Ron Weasley but had failed to finish off Granger. The damnable bastard Dark Lord couldn't do anything right. Molly ranted that it wasn't fair that of the two victims of Harry Dark Lord the worthless, ugly Mudblood had lived and not her Ronnie.

So Molly had decided she would make the Mudblood regret living. And she did, helped by her daughter Ginerva. Ginny saw to it that Hermione's life was made into a living hell. She had always been a social outcast and in her sixth year without Harry, Neville and even Looney Lovegood, she was completely friendless. Ginny had no reason to associate with her or even to be civil. Ron had only used her to have his homework done. Now Ron was gone and had to be avenged.

The first thing Molly had arranged, courtesy of Albus Dumbledore, was to have Granger lose her Prefect badge. It had been Granger's fault that Ronnie hadn't been made Head Boy after all and since Ronnie was dead he couldn't be a Prefect so why should Granger still be allowed to have a badge and the honor?

It had been a terrible blow to the girl especially when Lavender Brown of all people was given her badge. But much to everyone's surprise, Lavender refused the badge without giving a reason. So Molly Weasley made one up saying the girl had loved her Ronnie so much that the sight of the badge caused her sorrow. Yeah, right. So Parvati Patil was the seventh year Gryffindor girls' Prefect.

The only thing Granger had in her life was her books, her good grades, her studying, her researching and her ambition. That was the only way to hurt her now. Ginny "arranged" for Hermione to be banned from the Library.

Several valuable books had been destroyed. Madame Pince had been informed that the evidence pointed to Hermione Granger who had ruined the books so that they could not be used by fifth students who the Mudblood was jealous of and feared their OWL marks would be higher than hers had been. Madame Pince did not believe for a moment that Hermione Granger would dog ear a book let alone destroy one or a few dozen. However, the Headmaster himself told Madame Pince that all the evidence pointed to the girl and she was to be banned from the Library for the rest of the year.

"How is the girl going to get her assignments done?" the Librarian had asked the Headmaster. All he said was that was the girl's problem. He also said he was investigating the rumor that the girl was going dark and Madame Pince wouldn't want to aid someone in going down that path now would she?

Naturally Granger went hysterical. She tried to order books outside of the school. The books had been ordered, paid for and according to Flourish and Blotts, been sent off in a timely manner. The books never made it through the mail checks. The reason given was that since it was Hermione Granger, who was being investigated due to accusations that she was going dark, the books were being thoroughly checked, first by the school, then sent off to the Ministry, then sent back to the school who would then check the books since they were coming into the school.

Granger was being screwed and everybody knew it. If she couldn't go to the Library, she couldn't complete her assignments or at least complete them to the satisfaction of the teachers. Granger had an excellent memory and her own private stock of books which she carried in her multi-compartment school trunk – at least she _**had had a private stock of books**_. One day she came back from class to find her trunk opened and all her books (well over 100 books) in ashes. The ashes were spread all over her trunk, her bed, her clothes – everywhere.

Parvati had followed her in the room witnessed the girl's reaction and then had to send one of the younger year girls to find Professor McGonagall and fetch Madame Pomfrey. Granger was having a nervous breakdown.

Ginny Weasley had been in class so she missed seeing the actual breakdown. However, she enjoyed hearing about it and was planning on visiting the unfortunate girl in the Infirmary to gloat – after Granger came out of her catatonic state. Everybody knew who had burned Granger's books and if they didn't they soon heard in gleeful detail how it had been accomplished and Ginny was callous enough to suggest making bets on Granger's probable reactions when – or if – she recovered.

"I wonder how she will react when she finds out that somehow her book bag containing all her schoolbooks, notes and study planners have disappeared?" The girl and her sycophants all laughed long and loud when this was said.

Many Slytherins and many Ravenclaws enjoyed hearing about the hated girl's problem. However, although it was not noticed there were many even among Slytherins and Ravenclaws who did not rejoice, but they did worry.

Hermione Granger now had nothing. No Library privileges, no private books, no schoolbooks or notes and now no parchment or pens and inks to take notes. She had been stopped from ordering any books, there were no Hogsmeade weekends to buy books or supplies. All she could do was to pay attention in class and rely on her memory. But she couldn't do her homework because she didn't have the supplies and nobody "had any to loan or even sell to her."

When Hermione was finally released from the Infirmary and entered the Great Hall for breakfast she was greeted with a shout of "Why don't you just give up and kill yourself now Granger?" coming from the Slytherin table.

It had hurt but Hermione knew that if she didn't continue walking over to and sitting down at the Gryffindor table she would never live it down and it would be the end of her. So despite the laughter coming from the Slytherin and Ravenclaw tables she made her way to her spot at the end of the table.

But then the worse had happened.

Ginny Weasley walked over to Hermione. She was followed by three of her friends. If one knew what was good for you, you were Ginny Weasley's friend because you definitely didn't want to be her enemy.

"Well if it isn't the Mudblood who's going dark. The Mudblood who thinks she is so smart that she could join up with Harry Dark Lord despite her filthy blood and ugly face." The friends laughed, while Hermione just tried to freeze and maybe disappear.

"So how's the studying going? Do you think you'll be valedictorian? Will you be flooded with offers of apprenticeships or will you go directly into a cushy Ministry job? Oh wait, you can't do any of that now can you. You don't study anymore, you don't read, do your homework or even take notes in class. I wonder why?"

The friends of Ginny laughed again. Slytherins like Pansy Parkinson were making what they considered amusing comments regarding the confrontation but every table was looking waiting to see what happened.

Up at the teachers' table McGonagall was panicking. She had been desperately trying to help the poor girl, her very favorite student, but once Molly Weasley demanded some satisfaction for her son's death, Dumbledore had abandoned the girl. Molly wanted money, apparently money which Dumbledore had promised her family, but for some reason the money wasn't forthcoming. Albus had blamed the Goblins. As usual McGonagall didn't know what was going on.

"You didn't really think you'd get away with it did you? We still don't know how you pulled it off only that you did, but rest assured YOU WILL PAY." She and her three friends went back to their seats. Hermione sat shaking in her seat but she hadn't reacted as Ginny had hoped. She began eating and tried to act natural.

Hermione had gone to her classes and listened carefully to the lectures. Despite being unconscious for over a week she had been expected to turn in homework so naturally she was given a zero in each class. She had already accepted that there was no way she would be valedictorian, or have any chance for a job in the Magical World after school. She just hoped she could graduate then leave without having her wand snapped or ending up in Azkaban.

Her only consolation was that some of her teachers did not persecute her. Naturally Snape did as well as a few others. McGonagall, Flitwick and Sprout took pity on her and let her read a course book. She had to read it in their classroom but at least she got to read the book and study. She practiced on her own and managed to sneak off to the Room of Requirement where she found more books to read, or at least she had. Apparently, she had been ratted out and two days before Christmas the room had been spelled to not allow her entry.

She didn't expect to receive anything for Christmas as she was still not receiving any mail. Her life had been hard since Harry was sent to Azkaban, but then so had many people's lives. Three students had committed suicide in the first months of this school year. All of them had been Muggleborns.

She simply could not understand why the Headmaster had abandoned her. She had done everything he had ever asked of her including what she now finally realized had been spying on Harry. She had desperately tried to talk with the Headmaster but he totally ignored her and McGonagall said there was nothing she could do.

Hermione knew she had been spelled to do all of Ron's homework for him and give him a set of her notes (which his brain could understand) so that he could do the minimum of studying just before a test. During their sixth year he had mostly ignored her which was a lot better than he had really treated her their first five years. There was nothing she could do about it.

Sixth year saw her grades slipping not because she was working less but she was being "pranked" as Professor McGonagall had told her. Her homework disappeared as she entered a class, her tests were "lost" in certain classes – like Potions, Ancient Runes and Arithmancy and she was constantly taunted and hexed when she walked in the halls.

For some reason Ron had blamed her for his not being made Head Boy. He had sent those nasty, frightening letters and had kept his promise the day they returned to Hogwarts by catching her in the hall and nearly beating her to death. From what she had heard, everybody knew he did it as he even bragged about it but no punishment was given to him.

Then he had had the "accident" which then segued into a murder verdict blamed on Harry Potter. Harry and the two Lestranges had somehow escaped Azkaban and had remained free. For some reason in the middle of November Molly Weasley decided to blame Hermione Granger for Ron's murder. Why or how she came to this conclusion especially since Dumbledore was still saying that Harry Potter was responsible for it, she hadn't a clue.

Molly had tried to have the girl arrested and tried for the murder. Despite all the evidence staring the crazed woman in the face, she ignored the fact that Hermione had been in a coma and also had been "attacked" by Harry Potter. Molly started mouthing off that the only reason Hermione had survived was because she had used the darkest of magics to trade Ron's life for her.

How Hermione had managed to accomplish this dark magic when she was unconscious, wandless due to being unconscious and IN A COMA was passed over as the Weasley matriarch screamed, screeched, accused, slander Hermione's name in the press and did many insane things to discredit the girl.

And Dumbledore had let it happened. He didn't try to disprove it and he was still saying that Harry Dark Lord was responsible for Hermione's beating and Ron's murder. Yet he had started the investigation to pacify Molly Weasley as she and all the Weasleys were "noble, true, totally loyal members of the Light and a credit to Magic and needed closure."

Then the last week of November the harassment started in earnest, her books were stolen, then all burned, she had no paper, supplies or help - nothing at all! Her life was a nightmare and she really didn't know why she didn't follow the advice of that Slytherin (who she knew was Pansy Parkinson) and kill herself. She really wanted to but couldn't so came to the conclusion that she had been spelled not to.

Why were all of these people hurting her? Even the three teachers who were aiding her gave her no answers and couldn't be seen to be helping her. WHY WAS THIS HAPPENNG TO HER?

So she had sat at the end of the Gryffindor table eating her meal. The only Christmas present she had was that Ginny Weasley had been allowed to leave the school and spend the holiday with her family as had a few other students whose parents were "favored" or "in good standing" with Dumbledore.

For some reason Draco Malfoy was not among the favored students. There was a rumor going around (which Hermione overhead because no one talked to her) that Narcissa Malfoy had pulled a runner, disappeared, abandoned her family, just up and left and could not be found. Lucius Malfoy was in high standing so Narcissa would have no reason to run so some money was on her being kidnapped by Harry Dark Lord and his minions.

Hermione didn't care, she was just going to eat and go up to her room and do revising in her mind. Happy Christmas to her.!

Draco also sat eating his excellent Christmas dinner but it tasted like spoiled potion ingredients. He was worried about his mother who had just disappeared shortly after he returned to school. His father was at first shocked and worried. Narcissa had not had to take the oath because she had not been a marked Death Eater and Lucius was bound by his oath to "control his family" and see that they obeyed Dumbledore's every order.

Draco knew that to graduate (or even ever leave the school again) he would be forced to take the oath. He had heard a rumor that the oath was having new things added to it. Perhaps his mother had heard what they were and that she was going to be forced to take it. But what Draco really thought and feared was that his Auntie Bella had taken his mother for some nefarious purpose, certainly not for sisterly love.

At the head table Dumbledore sat on his throne-like chair enjoying the feast. Even though Potter was still free and he had no idea where the brat was, he was not worried as if he was in the company of the Lestranges, he was probably being tortured or perhaps even dead. Besides, he had slandered his name so that even if he escaped the Lestranges he would be found and turned over to Dumbledore and then the "real fun" could begin.

Dumbledore had plans for the boy as he always had even before the child was born. They had changed greatly over the past two years and could change again if the circumstances warranted it. But Dumbledore would win, he always did eventually.

Tomorrow one of his most important plans was going to be put into operation. His bid before the ICW and plea to the Goblin Nation to force Gringotts London to turn over the vaults which Dumbledore wanted had not succeeded. He knew it wouldn't but that was part of the plan. Actually he had wanted much more than that and by tomorrow he would have it. It had taken him a while to put his latest plan into operation, but he had to admit it would turn out to be one of his best.

At 10:00 p.m. tonight the Ministry was going to invade Gringotts. The front doors of the bank were impenetrable to most spells as they were heavily warded by Goblin magic. However, they were venerable to Muggle technology. Two Muggle tanks had been "borrowed" from the Muggle government. The tanks would bombard the great doors of Gringotts blowing them to pieces and anything in the great hall of the bank. Then Muggleborn wizards wearing the latest in Muggle military gear would run through the bank foyer and using some Muggle devices - Dumbledore couldn't understand how they worked - these devices would start sending Muggle poison gases through the bank and into the tunnels.

The Goblins would not know what was hitting them and hopefully most of the first responders would be killed, leaving the way clear for the Muggleborn military wizards and Ministry Aurors (also wearing the Muggle equipment) to storm the bank, using a mix of more of the strange but lethal Muggle equipment as well as the potent magic of the Auror hit wizards.

If everything went as planned, and naturally it would since it was Dumbledore's plan, Dumbledore and of course, the Ministry would have captured the bank, subdued or killed most (if not all) of the Goblins. They would OWN Gringotts and retrieve all the gold and treasures contained in ALL vaults. Wizards such as Lucius Malfoy would awake to find out that their vaults had been "retrieved" in the confusion but then again, the Ministry would be free to start _sharing the wealth_ and widows, orphans, war veterans, and many others would benefit from this liberation. In reality it would all be going into the hands of the Ministry or rather Dumbledore.

Dumbledore would announce to the ICW that the Goblins had started another rebellion thus violating the long standing treaties. If the Goblin Nation complained and/or the ICW issued sanctions, then Magical Britain would secede from the other nations and Dumbledore would be free to establish his magical paradise rule by the Light (and Dumbledore).

At exactly 10:10 p.m. (things were running a bit behind) the attack began. The Goblins were taken by surprised, didn't know what was hitting them and many were killed or badly injured in the first half hour. However, Goblins were mean, vicious little devils and fierce warriors who had made studies of all warriors, their weapons, fighting tactics and these included Muggles. Just because the wizards ignored the advances Muggle technology had made didn't mean the Goblins had.

Vicious fighting continued for hours. It was fortunate that extensive silencing charms had been placed around the area surrounding because the noise was dreadful. For anyone who could remember it could be compared to the London Blitz with the same type of results.

When dawn arose on Boxing Day, news of the "rebellion" had been sent out to the ICW and the _Daily Prophet_ was preparing to send out their pre-written announcement of the great victory and the start of a new era. In reality, much of Diagon Alley had been destroyed and many of its inhabitants were dead, dying or severely injured.

Most of the Muggleborn military wizards and Aurors were in the same condition. Goblin losses were unknown. The great doors were down, but rubble had been used as a temporary wall and the dragon who lived in the depths of the bank was now stationed in the great hall acting as a sentry. It took the liberty to breakfast on some of the dead but hey – waste not want not.

At dawn on Boxing Day even Albus Dumbledore still slept as his announcement had been prepared and sent in advance so why should he not sleep in. He had outdone himself in feasting and then after the feast when the students were dismissed back to their respective houses, he had made it mandatory that the staff have after feast drinks with him.

The staff knew something big had or would be happening as Dumbledore had that cat in the cream type of look on his face. He was in too good a mood and it worried some of the staff who knew him well. He was being coy, giving little hints about what the news would bring tomorrow. He had kept them all up late before they were dismissed.

They, the students and most especially Dumbledore would be very, very surprised tomorrow.

The Ford-Hills had slept late once again but made it down before breakfast ended. At least they could have a proper English breakfast before they took a walk around the town. Trudy was being sent to Berlin Gringotts for a news update and to book an appointment with Bonecrusher while Kreacher had been left to "guard their room."

Bella was not impressed with the ski resort, or rather the shops. They had to decide what to do now that they were homeless. They probably would have to change their names or go someplace far away from Italy. There was no way they would be going back to England and Bella knew too many people in France to risk their going there.

They had liked Portugal and Spain was a possibility but didn't know Portuguese or Spanish. Geoff thought Germany would be interesting as they liked the time they had spent there and he joked that Steven could get a job selling cars or maybe even designing them.

Steven liked the idea of Greece but Bella didn't. They were about to turn around and head back to the hotel when a disillusioned and very upset Trudy popped in front of them. She said they had to go to the bank IMMEDIATELY as some very, very bad things had happened in England.

Steven said, "I knew I should have asked for a drink at breakfast" while they walked away to a deserted place so they could go the Berlin.

"Oh Happy, Happy Christmas to us and a Bah Humbug to all," snipped Bella.

Everything belongs to JKRowling except the mad plots and the occasional character I have added. I make no money on this and just write to express my warped sense of imagination.

Chapter 11 – The World on Fire

Narcissa Black Malfoy would always remember December 27th as the day the world caught fire. That was because everything which she held dear in life, her life in Britain, was going up in smoke. There was nothing she could do about it either except to wait it out.

At least she had something to keep her busy because you see Narcissa Black Malfoy had a job. Yes she was actually working for a living - in the Muggle world. Yes, I'll say it again: Narcissa Black Malfoy was working for a living in the Muggle world.

But so were many others British expatriates. Narcissa was just the most surprising. But if one wanted to survive with any sort of personal dignity, one had to do anything one could to survive. In Dumbledore's Britain escaping and not being captured and dragged back into slavery was the only revenge she could have.

But like the very few who had managed this feat, prices had to be paid. Her price had been to abandon her son, or so it would seem. Of course she hadn't left the Manor that day with that intention. No she was going shopping in Diagon Alley.

She was the best and most sought after hostess and Lucius had been ordered by his new master to hold a fund raiser for St. Mungo's. That was what it was being advertised as but in reality, once the invitees were behind closed (and locked) doors they would be drinking a potion-spiked punch. Donations would be given that night, but it would not only be money. No, Dumbledore was going to be there preaching his crusade for the Light. Between his "mesmerizing words" and the spiked punch, few, if any, would leave without having finally seen the Light and swearing the oath.

Dumbledore had personally come to Malfoy Manor to give his lackey the orders to hold the event. He had also informed Lucius about the punch bragging that "Severus has finally perfected that potion I wanted. We will be bringing many of the foolish holdouts to sense. Narcissa will take care of all of the details." He then handed Lucius a list of those he wanted invited with the orders to see that none of them refused.

Unknown to Dumbledore or Lucius was that Biddy, Narcissa's personal house elf, had been spying on them. Biddy was not a Malfoy house elf. She was a Black house elf who had come as part of Narcissa' dowry and thus was not under control of the House Malfoy. Due to Lucius' oath, all _his house elves_ had to follow his orders and were inadvertently subject to Dumbledore's control. They could not spy on or report anything which happened in Malfoy Manor.

Narcissa needed to know of any plans. As Lucius' wife, and as she had not taken the Dark Mark, she had not been obliged to take the oath - yet. Narcissa was Lucius' wife and therefore he ruled over her and she was obliged to _follow his orders_ as in Magical law she was his possession.

It was just a matter of time before everyone in Britain would be sworn to the Light Lord from hell. Narcissa had been scheming to escape and escape with Draco. Unfortunately she had heard about all of the failed attempts so if was not as if she could just grab her son and run. She was still Lucius' wife and by the laws of Britain she had to obey him in all things.

The Magical World was behind the times in many things and still retained a rather medieval view of marriage and the rights of witches. An unmarried witch was much better off and had more rights than a married witch.

Unknown to most people, even ones who considered herself well-read such as Hermione Granger, if she married a Muggle or another Muggleborn, she would retain most of those rights. However, is she married a Half-blood, like Harry or, Merlin forbid, a Pureblood, like Ron Weasley, she would lose those rights and basically become chattel in the eyes of the law. It had happened to Lily Evans when she married James Potter and she hadn't found out about the law until it was too late.

A rich Pureblood or Half-blood female usually had a marriage contract drawn up and depending on the rank of the house, the dowry provided and the wording of the marriage contract, they were better protected and had more rights. Considering the amount of money, power or prestige involved, Purebloods insisted on a way out of a marriage, or an escape clause.

However, a Half-blood, like Millicent Bulstrode, or a Pureblood, like Ginny Weasley was usually at the mercy of a husband and/or his family. It was nearly impossible for them to obtain a divorce unless their husband or his family allowed it.

Luckily for Narcissa, she was from a very wealthy and powerful Pureblood Family who made certain she would have an escape clause if she were mistreated or if the marriage became a political or social liability. She could get a divorce if there were no children or an annulment to acquire custody of any children. An annulment would declare that the marriage had never existed and due to the way the laws of inheritance were written, she could get custody of Draco and there was nothing Lucius could do about it.

Draco would not be declared illegitimate and if Lucius had no other heir, Draco would inherit. However, Draco would not have an "official" last name unless he was officially adopted by someone other than his mother or the Head of House of his mother's family granted him the use of the family name. No matter what Draco would be free and protected from Lucius and, more importantly, Dumbledore's manipulations and orders.

If she had to admit it, she much preferred the Dark Lord to this…disgusting Light Lord who her husband was now irrevocably enslaved to. At least the Dark Lord was trying to bring Britain back to the Old Ways and the free use of Magic. He, at least initially, had been leading a just and right rebellion against the corruption and stupidity of the Ministry and the insane goals and agenda of Dumbledore.

They were winning at first, but then the Dark Lord started to change for some unknown reason. He had been accepting as followers some of the dregs of the earth, but Lucius had explained to her that a multitude was needed to first win and then they would be discarded. But then Harry Potter had defeated their Lord and Dumbledore started to get his plans back on track.

The Dark Lord came back, ironically resurrected using Potter, and then, even more strange, Potter killed him again. Then Potter, in turn, was declared the next Dark Lord and condemned by Dumbledore to life in Azkaban. Dumbledore then did the unexpected and doom them all.

The old bastard told them all that this time Voldemort was well and truly gone and that to save their lives, fortunes and heirs they must swear an unbreakable allegiance to him. "You are not being marked with a slave's brand as you were with Voldemort," Dumbledore told them all, "No you are just being lead to the Light and will take my oath to make sure you don't…relapse."

Once he had gotten his claws into the remaining, powerful, rich Death Eaters like Lucius, Dumbledore had thrown off all pretenses and still maintaining his benevolent persona, had enslaved, condemned and imprisoned them all. His goal was to rule Britain, destroy the Old Ways, condemn and forbid all dark magic and just set the world on fire – fiendfyre actually.

Biddy had told Narcissa of the plan. Then Lucius had given his wife "his" orders, naturally not telling her of the real plan or spiked punch. He cavalierly handed her the guest list and left her to her work. Narcissa read the list and her blood froze. People would have to be warned.

It had taken her all night to make her decision and her plans. The next morning she left to make some arrangements. Although she left for Diagon Alley, once there she entered a shop "a cause friendly shop" and apparated out of the Alley.

She materialized in a Muggle neighborhood and disillusioned, entered the house of her disowned sister Andromeda Tonks.

After the escape from Azkaban of Harry Dark Lord, her sister Bellatrix and Rabastan Lestrange, things had just started crumbling in her world. According to Lucius, Dumbledore was not upset and was confident that the boy would shortly be captured or killed by the Lestranges. Apparently he had not so Dumbledore abruptly changed his plans and started using Potter as a scapegoat to cover up Dumbledore's more darker and nefarious schemes.

Thanks to Biddy's spying, Narcissa found out some of the horrible plans the old wizard was making. She had then made the decision to fight back. That was why she contacted her sister. At first her sister refused to believe her actions were anything other than pure until Narcissa swore on her life and magic. Andromeda than did the same and Narcissa told her about Dumbledore.

Andromeda and her Muggleborn husbands were lawyers in both the Magical and Muggle Worlds. They had a good idea what was going on in Hogwarts as they had for clients some of the parents trying to take their children out of Hogwarts and leave Britain. Since laws had been passed forbidding this, the Tonkses had started something called the Underground Railroad. It was named after a Muggle organization founded in the 19th Century in the United States before the American Civil War to smuggle slaves out of the Southern states to freedom. Since Dumbledore's goal was to enslave Britain to his Light, Andromeda thought it a fitting name.

Unfortunately, despite the rescuing of some children and/or adults, Dumbledore had managed to bring them back magically. It had taken the Tonkses a while to find out how and it had been the Goblins who had finally found out and told the "conductors" as people like the Tonkses referred to themselves.

The sisters had kept in touch with Narcissa becoming their spy. They knew it would just be a matter of time before they were exposed, but all that Narcissa asked was to let her Draco escape and not be found. It had been worked out that the only true way to leave and have a chance to stay free was to live as a Muggle. Draco wouldn't like it but since he had expressed his fears to his mother during the summer, she made the decision to free him and then tell and teach him how to survive.

The plan had been for Draco to come home for Christmas and that was when they would leave. By that time, Narcissa's annulment from Lucius could be finalized. The annulment was being set up via the Goblins at their Berlin Branch and being done according to the marriage contract laws of the House of Black. She would no longer be his wife and therefore not subject to him and Draco would also not be his legal son. Therefore, neither Narcissa nor Draco could be commanded by or forced to obey Lucius. They could flee Britain and not legally be returned since they would not be a wife or son of Lucius Malfoy.

Since it was being done in an international court of law and granted by Lord Black, Lucius and Dumbledore could not _**legally**_ do anything about it. Since they would be living as Muggles, there was a good chance they would not be found.

But then Narcissa saw the list. Besides most of the Pureblood "holdouts" and some other persons of importance who had been managing to avoid "the right of the Light" both Tonkses were on the list.

Their only daughter, who naturally being an Order of the Phoenix member, an Auror at the Ministry and a Dumbledore lackey, had not only taken the oath but had been browbeating her parents to see sense, make the right choice and take the oath.

At first she had tried to convince them but they refused. Next she threatened to "disown" them if they were going to be foolish. When they started publically "defying Dumbledore" by representing dissident parents, suspected Death Eater sympathizers and were revealed as having signed a petition to give Harry Dark Lord a public trial, their daughter actually broke into their house one night and nearly cursed them. Actually she threw one at her mother but her father had been quick with his wand and stunned her.

"I just came out of the kindness of my heart," their daughter had yelled at them, "to warn you that your actions will not be tolerated. You are heading for big trouble and I would hate to see you disbarred and sent to Azkaban because of your 'Dark views' so you better wise up or the next time I see you it will probably be to arrest you for sedition."

That had been two weeks ago. "Perhaps our baby used her influence to 'give us one more chance' Ted Tonks had opined bitterly.

"We have to leave, and leave now." Andromeda said.

"But Draco…"

"Is leaving for Hogwarts tomorrow, isn't he?"

"Yes, so I can take him tonight and…"

"No you can't because tonight you will be in Berlin working on the annulment. Lucius won't know about it and knowing him he won't even know you are missing until he goes looking for you. Since we will also be leaving tonight, it will look like we kidnapped you."

"But I can't leave without my son."

Andromeda looked her sister in the eyes and said, "I promise you that Draco will be rescued and rescued before he is forced to take the oath. It probably won't be until Christmas as planned but he should be safe until then. The spy in Hogwarts will be arranging for an escape sometime before the holidays and Draco is first on the list to be saved."

Narcissa didn't want to leave, not without Draco, but Ted stunned her. He would be making copies of the list and distributing it to those on the list. Hopefully some of them could avoid going and escape. Andromeda called Biddy. She explained the situation and once Ted had made the copies told the elf to take the list back to the Manor so when Narcissa's rooms were searched it would still be there and hopefully no one would know she was a spy.

Biddy was to plead innocent and act appropriately distressed and crying for her mistress. She would have to stay at the Manor so as not to arouse suspicion and she couldn't tell Draco. She would have to swear that Narcissa had taken nothing with her except for her money bag since she was going shopping to further the ruse. "But we will call you as soon as it is safe."

The Tonkses had prepared to flee taking with them only the barest minimum all of which had been carefully checked and then periodically rechecked for trackers and spells. They had transferred most of their money out of the London Gringotts Branch to another Goblin Branch under assumed names. They also had established several Muggle bank accounts. Their daughter knew they had the one Muggle account, but did know of the several new ones so hopefully they could not be found if a paper trail was commenced.

For years Narcissa had a separate bank account which Lucius never knew about because it was also in a Muggle bank (long story). Once her annulment papers were signed, her dowry would automatically be transferred to a new Gringotts account. Until that time the vault would be frozen pending the "rescue" from her kidnappers. However, it was decided that the dowry would remain in her London Gringotts account until such time as her involvement was discovered or Lucius had stopped monitoring it – which either came first. Although his wife would be missing Lucius would be more concerned about her dowry and much more upset if that was gone than if she was dead.

So much for arranged marriages!

Narcissa had spent Christmas Eve and Day with her sister and brother-in-law, but had returned to her home and workplace on Boxing Day morning. She worked as manager of a ski lodge. She was also part owner, so she had her own private suite of rooms and lived there with her faithful elf Biddy. Fate was in a mischievous mood as her business was the ski resort where the Ford-Hills were staying.

None of them would have recognized the other. The Ford-Hills had had plastic surgery after all and the beautiful Narcissa had changed her hair color to a medium brown and had cut it in a short, stylish Muggle coiffure. To complete her disguise, she was usually seen wearing glasses – "for reading" – which were held on a chain hanging around her neck.

Being Narcissa she still dressed well, at least for a middle class Muggle woman. She had been trained from birth to run a huge household and was an accomplished hostess so becoming a manager of a hotel was a job she was more than capable of doing.

She usually enjoyed her work, but today her mind was somewhere else, namely Britain.

Just as she was leaving her sister's home, the Wizarding Wireless broke the news about the Goblin rebellion in Britain. They reported the official Ministry version and read Dumbledore's written statement to the ICW, both of which, unknown to the public, had been pre-written and sent before the actual attack began. Both were far from the truth and the Ministry and Dumbledore had expected nothing but victory. Surprise!

It would be several hours before the truth was known. That was due to the Goblin Nation's official statement of _**what really had occurred**_. There were anti-owls wards cast on the resort and Narcissa didn't get the Wizarding Wireless because she didn't like it. She actually preferred listening to Muggle radio and watching television. Biddy usually picked up magical newspapers from the magical center in Geneva.

Biddy had been popping back and forth from the lodge to the Tonkses to keep Narcissa apprised of what was happening. It wasn't until December 27th that the statement of the Goblin Nation was accepted as fact and the gory details of the Battle of Diagon Alley were finally known.

It had taken Dumbledore a day to recover from shock and to quickly think up a Plan B. He didn't dare leave Britain to attend the hastily called ICW meeting. Besides Britain had seceded from the European Union and although Dumbledore still thought he could retain his position at the ICW, he had a rude awakening to find that he had been voted out by a 97% majority vote.

Naturally Harry Dark Lord was blamed for the mess. Dumbledore even had the balls to inform the Magical World that it had been Harry Dark Lord who had not only planned and caused the attack on Gringotts but had written and sent off the official statements of the Ministry and Dumbledore's message to the ICW.

But NOBODY was buying any of it. Well except for people like Molly Weasley and other fanatical Dumbledore followers.

Narcissa didn't know it yet, but the only good thing to come out of the disaster was, since Dumbledore was very pre-occupied, the spy at Hogwarts had managed to rescue several students, one of which was Draco. The students were flown out of Scotland via a Muggle aircraft (scaring the hell out of most of them) and would be flying to Norway where they would be met by a member of the Underground Railroad, checked for spells, curses, potions, mind-tampering and anything else the Norwegian healers and Unspeakables could think of before being sent to places of safety and/or to any friends or relatives living outside of Britain.

It wasn't until about 8:00 p.m. on the 27th that Andromeda rang up her sister and said "Draco escaped." She didn't have any more information at this point only that 27 students were saved and were being checked out at an unidentified country and that _**they were safe**_.

Narcissa was so happy, so grateful. She just wanted to see her son, hold him in her arms and beg his forgiveness that she had been unable to take him with her when she had made her escape.

Now that her son was away from the horror, she didn't care if Britain actually caught fire and burned with the fury of fiendfyre. It would probably be the only way that her homeland could finally be purged. But at the same time she doubted that even fiendfyre would stop Dumbledore.

The Ford-Hills had been summoned to Berlin Gringotts and apprised of the situation. Somehow Harry knew that he would be blamed for the disaster and Rabastan had to pay him 5 galleons when the news came in confirming it.

"Well if it had gone off without a hitch, Dumbledore would have taken credit for "saving the country and defeating the Goblins," Rabastan said.

"True, but we are talking me here."

Harry had inquired as to the casualty rate of the Goblins, hoping that most of them had managed to survive.

"Fortunately, all of the women and children had been evacuated and most of personal Goblin wealth. Although our warriors gained glory killing most of their enemies, many died or will not survive, but as is our custom, their names will live in glory and tales of their bravery and victory will be sung for generations."

"But will the survivors be able to get out?"

"Once their final duties are fulfilled, they will use the bank's secret escape tunnels. But they will have left more horror for the wizards to find than the deaths of their brethren."

"What do you mean?" asked a curious Bella.

Bonecrusher gave an evil smile. "Since Gringotts was attacked and much death was caused and fortunes lost, we are claiming what is our due as per the many treaties made with British wizards. _**We are claiming all the gold and treasures in the vaults**_."

Bella screamed and started jumping up and down. "Are you saying that you are seizing all the Malfoy vaults and their contents?"

"Yes. His will be one of the first, followed by the official Ministry vault, the Hogwarts vaults a/k/a Dumbledore's vaults and then as many vaults as possible until they are all empty or the wizards manage to attack again."

"As we speak, all Gringotts branches are receiving vaults. Since the wizards lost so many of their Aurors and Muggleborn soldiers who either volunteered or were coerced into aiding Dumbledore, we just might have enough time to completely empty the bank."

The human trio started laughing and Bonecrusher joined in. Ordinarily Harry would be appalled at the great loss of life and destruction but he didn't and couldn't think about that at the moment. All he wanted was to picture the look on Dumbledore's face when he heard all of his plans and great schemes were destroyed. Also the look on Lucius Malfoy's face when he found out he was penniless.

The Ford-Hills had gone back to the lodge, had a late dinner and gone to bed. Trudy would be sent the next morning to get an update as well as to pick up newspapers.

The trio still had to decide where they were going to go. They still were not safe as who knew what Dumbledore would do next. Since he was trying to blame everything on Harry Dark Lord, Harry's life was still at risk. They still had to hide somewhere.

Rabastan and Harry had decided to learn to ski if only to have something to do. Their success was only so-so because they lacked the needed enthusiasm. Bella merely watch them attempting to learn and spent most of the time laughing at their efforts. At least they felt like they were "accomplishing something" and it did result them collapsing into bed early and sleeping like logs.

On December 30th Bonecrusher requested their presence for an update and because Harry had to make a decision in his capacity as Lord Black.

They were informed about the rescue of the 27 students. One of them was Draco Malfoy. Just before the Christmas holidays they were told about Narcissa's escape and her divorce from Lucius Malfoy. Harry had signed her annulment papers as Lord Black, and as all was official she could now reclaim her dowry and not _**legally**_ be forced to return to Britain.

It was being requested via Gringotts for Lord Black (as officially Narcissa did not know the true identity of the new Lord Black although she had a pretty good guess) that he accept Draco as his ward. As Narcissa's marriage was declared null and void and she was making a claim for her son, if Lord Black approved, Draco would become Draco Black since he was now officially not a Malfoy.

"What would making him my ward entail? I would only be acknowledging him as a member of the Black Family and not making him my heir or anything like that?"

"You would only be acknowledging him as a family member and he could use the name Draco Black instead of Draco No Name. You would not be obliged to give him money or provide for him as his mother has her dowry and some other private income. She is even part owner of a business. We could put this all in writing and both he and his mother would sign before you acknowledge him."

"Narcissa has a business? What kind of business?" asked a curious Bella.

Bonecrusher looked at some of the paperwork on his desk and then told them the name of the _**ski lodge they were staying at**_. The trio didn't know whether to laugh or be frightened. They decided to laugh when Bonecrusher informed them that tomorrow Draco would be arriving at the lodge to be reunited with his mother and start his new life – and live as a Muggle.

That was when Harry decided he would first "size up Draco's attitude" before he made a decision. Bella had not recognized her own sister so good was her disguise and she too thought it would be fun to fool her sister. Fortunately, her voice had been glamoured since they had left Italy and Bella wondered if Narcissa had done the same. Bella remembered seeing Narcissa but not hearing her talk.

"Okay what do you say we go back and have a talk with 'Mrs. Greene' about what celebrations the lodge will be having as tomorrow is New Year's Eve."

"It is also our Lord's birthday," added Bella.

"Oh that would be sweet" said Rabastan. "Mrs. Greene we would like to host a party on New Year's Eve. It is our dread Dark Lord's birthday and we will be having a few of his followers coming and we will be requiring a lot of whiskey, brandy, champagne and at least a dozen virgins for use as sacrifices during the festivities…."

That got another round of laughter.

So it was decided to go back to the lodge and have Rabastan ask about the possible celebrations offered on New Year's Eve but no mention of it being anyone's birthday or the need for virgins to sacrifice in dark rites.

Steven was unable to talk with Mrs. Greene as she was "otherwise occupied" so the assistant manager gave him the information. The ski lodge was just one of the five hotels in the town. There were two other large hotels who catered to a younger sort of clientele who came to ski, socialize, drink and find sex. In other words they were rather vulgar in Narcissa's opinion. The other two hotels catered more to students and those without much money or who just needed a cheap place to stay while passing through.

Narcissa's hotel was an old-fashioned ski lodge whose clientele had always been those people who just came to ski, have a nice quiet place to eat and sleep and should they desire a night life, they would just go to a bar or the clubs at the other hotels.

Narcissa had chosen to invest in a ski lodge mainly because ' . No one would ever expect the proud, sophisticated, well-bred Pureblood Narcissa Black Malfoy to know what skiing was or to stay at a ski lodge and most especially partially own and run one. It was the perfect hideout.

The main owners wanted to retire but could not sell the hotel. The lodge needed fixing up and a make-over. Narcissa had had the idea to revamp the lodge not only to attract skiers but also a different type of clientele in the off season. The Tonkses had contributed some of their meager savings as had another couple and adding her bit of money, a deal had been made with the owners. They retired but still owned a 35% interest in the hotel, Narcissa 35%, the Tonkses 15% and the other couple 15%.

Narcissa made substantial improvements in the three months she had been in charge. The needed repairs had been made, the hotel was freshly painted in tasteful colors, new linens were purchased and some extras were added.

In the basement a heated swimming pool had been installed. It was only about 4½ʹ deep but served two purposes. You could swim in the pool but you could also walk through the water. This was in consideration of some older people as there was nothing like a "walk" in warm water to ease old limbs while getting exercise. Even the younger people could do it. Two large hot tubs had been installed and one regular sauna as well as a "medicated" sauna. Again these would help ease aches and pains for both young and old as well as those with respiratory problems.

Hopefully, in the spring, an Olympic–size indoor swimming pool would be built next to the lodge as well as a fully equipped gym. Narcissa planned to advertise the lodge as a summer vacation retreat concentrating on healthy living. There were many glorious hiking trails surrounding the town

Narcissa was very proud of all she had accomplished and she just hoped Draco wouldn't judge her for using her limited funds in a Muggle venture. But like it or not, he would have to accept it as the alternatives were…deadly.

Everything belongs to JKRowling except the mad plots and the occasional character I have added. I make no money on this and just write to express my warped sense of imagination.

Chapter 12 – Let Me Out of Here

Draco, and a few others of the refugees, had arrived shortly after noon on the 31st. Mother and son had a quick and heartfelt reunion for about ten minutes until Draco stopped and looked at his surroundings. He was not pleased.

"Just what exactly is this, this…place?"

"Our new home – for the moment."

Narcissa quickly explained all that had happened in the past few months. On the way to "the safety of their new home" the Tonkses had briefed Draco and the others on the realities of their new lives. Naturally Draco didn't think that it pertained to him as his mother was in charge of things and she would never allow their style of living to reach the dregs which his disowned aunt had been mumbling about.

After Narcissa had told him all that she could safely tell her son, she waited hopefully for his reaction and approval. She had worked so hard and had accomplished so much in such a short time and things had been going very well. Now that her son, her baby, was finally here, safe and not under the oath, she could finally relax and they could have a new start and a chance at a decent life or at least while Britain was burning and Dumbledore was still in charge.

But now her darling boy just stood there staring at her, not saying a thing. But then he did and she wished he hadn't.

"When your sister informed me that we had about 40 bedrooms, I did not think we would be renting them out….to Muggles."

Then the boy went on to criticize his mother and everything she had accomplished. "Father would never allow….Father would refuse…..Father would have….."

Finally his mother snapped, "Your Father not only would but did do many things that _**no Malfoy would have ever tolerated**_. It case you didn't listen to your aunt, and apparently you didn't, YOUR FATHER, like everybody else in Britain is RUINED."

"'Emperor Dumbdamn' as the Goblins call him, over-estimated his power and attacked the Goblins, causing not the usual Goblin Rebellion which you learn about in school but A WAR. A WAR with the entire Goblin Nation. The Goblin Nation controls 60% of all the finances of Magical Europe, Northern Africa, the Middle East and some parts of Russia. I haven't heard today's update yet as I wanted, I needed to see you, my son, before I talked to Andromeda to find out what else has happened since yesterday, but THINGS ARE BAD, and YOUR FATHER IS AN ACCOMPLICE IN THE FIASCO."

She broke down, trying to hold back tears. Here was her son and he was disappointed in his mother. He was legally of age in the Magical World, but he was basically a child, a very pampered, spoiled, protected child, but one nonetheless.

Once again she tried to instill in him just how much had been sacrificed on his behalf and how she had been and would continue trying her very best to provide for him and keep him safe…and happy.

But Draco was having none of it. He just stormed off leaving his mother in "mid-rant" as he would later say. He didn't know where he was going, but he just went. He walked out into what was the lobby of the lodge and then stopped. Where would he go and what would he do now?

Finally he noticed Daphne and Astoria Greengrass walking towards him. "Well Draco, are you coming to the dining room for lunch?"

"Yes, yes I am." He remembered that he was hungry so he just followed the girls. The dining room wasn't all that large. The formal dining room at the Manor was bigger but then he wasn't living at the Manor anymore was he. To make matters worse, there were Muggles in the room having the impertinence to actually be sitting down and eating in the same room where he would shortly be dining.

Although there had been times in his life when he and his parents had been forced to stay at a five-star Muggle hotel, they either took their meals in their rooms or dined in a private section walled off from the filth and rift raff. But this, this was unbearable. Unbearable to think that he might have to live with this, this…

No doubt due to the situation in which he found himself in, he had let his mask slip and the Greengrass girls had noticed. Daphne gently touched his arm and led him over to the tables which had been roped off especially for them. They might be separated from the Muggles, but would still be forced to look at them. Well he wouldn't as he plopped himself down in the first chair he saw with his back to the Muggles.

A very small menu was on the table, which was definitely not up to Malfoy standards. Daphne and Astoria seated themselves at the same table. The roped off section consisted of three tables seating four and one tables seating two to accommodate the 12 students who had been brought to the ski lodge. Draco and the Greengrasses were sitting at one of the 4-seaters as they were the last ones down. This was the only unoccupied table as the two other 4-seaters were filled. Hermione Granger sat alone at the table for two, reading a book and absent mindedly eating.

Draco had been greatly annoyed when he had noticed that Granger was one of those who had escaped. Granted she had been abandoned by Dumbledore, persecuted by all, especially the Weasleys and treated so badly that even Draco had felt a small, a very small, bit of sympathy for the girl. But who had made the decision that out of all of those much more worthy of saving, she had been rescued. It was outrageous!

Once she had been cleared by the healers in Norway, she had immediately requested not food, not sleep but something to read. She hadn't stopped since. She even read while eating just like she was doing now. Unfortunately if he moved his seat to avoid looking at her he would have to look at Muggles. How was he to bear this?

He was too agitated to concentrate on the pathetic menu so Daphne ordered for him. Once the order had been placed and the Muggle waitress had left, he started complaining. Mercifully he was talking low so that at least the Muggles wouldn't hear him.

Unknown to him he was being watched from one of the Muggle tables. The Ford-Hills were well-entrenched at their table and had been once they heard that the refugees had arrived earlier. Most of the 12 had been shown to their rooms, freshened up and come down to have lunch. Only Draco and the two Greengrasses had arrived late.

"Looks like his majesty isn't happy," Geoff remarked.

Ruth retorted, "No for a Malfoy forced to endure such horrific conditions such as this he is behaving remarkably well. He must have been talking with Narcissa before he came in and is still in shock."

"Yes," added Steven, "as nice as this ski lodge is for we 'unworthies' it is a great step down from Malfoy Manor – like taking a step off the T-bar half way down the slope."

"We'll have to arrange a meeting with him. Think he'll be at the party tonight?"

Since the two largest hotels had been advertising a "wild, drink-filled night of celebration" or something vulgar like that, Narcissa's lodge was only serving an extra meal. "A New Year's Eve party commencing at 10:00 p.m. with a lavish hors d'oeuvres table, cocktails, wine and champagne included for a prix fixe price.

"Who cares, but considering we have nothing else planned, we're going."

Draco had managed to eat his chicken soup before glancing at his entrée before he started losing it. Apparently he just looked at the beef ragout with disgust before declaring it uneatable.

"And how do you know is it uneatable since you haven't touched it?" Daphne asked.

"I'm a Malfoy so I just _know_ these things."

"Well your mother must have approved it if it is on the menu at _her hotel_."

"Perhaps, but this food is meant for them," he said jerking his head over towards the Muggle section. "For us, she should have provided a proper beef ragout and not…beef stew."

"You've eaten beef stew at Hogwarts – I've seen you."

"But that was _at school_ where the menu is for everybody even Mudbloods, and since we are not allowed our house elves to bring us proper dinners, it was either eat that swill or starve."

Draco did not know it but the Ford-Hills had placed a Muggle recording device with a special rune attached under all of the tables allotted to the 12 so that they could hear exactly what was being said. Once all the diners left, Trudy would pop under the tables and retrieve the devices.

However, Draco had started talking loud enough so that someone with exceptionally good hearing, like Geoff and Ruth could make out some of the conversation. By now Draco had called over the waitress and demanded something worth eating be brought to him even if it wasn't on the menu. Twenty minutes later a small steak with sautéed mushrooms, asparagus and au gratin potatoes was brought. He still was not satisfied but since he was hungry he forced it down.

By this time everybody else of the 12 had left, even Hermione. It was just Draco, who ordered desert and the two Greengrass girls. The Ford-Hills were dawdling over their coffee looking for an excuse to stay longer without being obvious so Steven made the sacrifice and decided to order another piece of chocolate cake. When the last of the other Muggle patrons had left, Draco, not noticing or caring about the Ford-Hills, started another rant.

"I blame Potter for all this," he said putting a piece of the chocolate cake in his mouth. After he swallowed the bite he stated, "Everything can be traced back to that Half-blood, son-of-a-Mudblood whore, getting himself sent to…jail. As always, he ruined everything and let 'Emperor Dumbdamn' take control. If our Lord hadn't been killed, things would have been so much better."

"Well he was and things are worst," snapped Daphne. "You can't blame Potter for everything unlike a certain 'Emperor' and others – like your father and the Ministry."

"I most certainly can and will," huffed Draco. "In fact, if I ever run into Potter, the first thing I'm going to do is crucio him. Then after about five minutes, I'll take a break, then do it again, break, again, break, etc. until I get tired. Then I'll…"

"Shut up Draco," hissed Astoria, "I think those Muggles are listening and you are breaking the Secrecy Act."

"Yes, my dear nephew," said Andromeda who silently appeared "You are behaving badly." She then looked at the Muggles before saying, "Please excuse my nephew's ill-manners because you see he has been sent down from school [note: British for expelled] and his family is not pleased."

The "Muggles" gave a weak smile and a nod then quickly got up and hastily left the dining room, acting like Muggles who knew a family argument was about to break out but were too polite to stay and witness it. Besides once they left aunt and nephew could really have at it and then Trudy would retrieve the recording devices and they could hear everything.

Also, from the looks of things the Greengrass girls were leaving and Daphne had an "I-am-going-to-obliviate-you-Muggles" look in her eyes. The trio had just made it to their rooms before they heard a knock on the door. A simple charm revealed a disillusioned Daphne at the door wand out and ready. The trio then disillusioned themselves, a door was opened and – Wham – a quick stunning spell had Daphne down, dragged quickly into the room and another spell was done to check to see if Astoria was also lurking about ready to help her sister. She wasn't.

After reverting back to visibility, Steven broke out the Veritaserum, Daphne was bound to a handy chair, the lighting in the room was changed, the girl was unstunned and quickly had the three drops of potion placed on her tongue.

All they did was to ask a few questions concerning how things had been at Hogwarts. Daphne told them about Hermione's problems, gave the inside dirt on what she had heard about Ron Weasley's death, Ginny and Molly Weasley's behavior, Dumbledore going completely crazy and how most of the students, even Slytherins, were really feeling.

"That opportunistic slut Pansy Parkinson is lowering herself to _**actually marry Percy Weasley**_ just as soon as she graduates. She is even bragging about it going so far as to taunt Malfoy for missing his big chance to marry her. As if anyone could or want to, brag about marrying a Weasley."

"But what was even worse, she was strongly hinting that the other Weasley boys were 'in the market' for a Pureblood wife and would even consider marrying 'the likes of a Greengrass' if their Mother makes them, if only to 'bring a filthy slimy snake into the righteous, true path of the Light as per the teachings of Albus Dumbledore' so watch it Daphne dear or you just might end up being pranked to death for the rest of your life.' That bitch! As if she wasn't…

Daphne was still chatting on volunteering information as apparently this was the first real time in who knew how long that she could actually express her true feelings and thoughts _**since even the walls at Hogwarts had eyes and ears to seek out the enemies of the Light**_.

Just as the Veritaserum ended Trudy popped in with the recording devices. Daphne was once again stunned, obliviated and Trudy popped her out of the room to a place where she could be unstunned and sent back to her room. Trudy also disillusioned herself to follow Daphne back as check to see if Astoria knew where her sister was going and if so, the girl would have to be brought back for obliviation. Fortunately Daphne had only told her sister she was going to look at a shop so the girl was safe.

The trio listened to the recorder placed on Draco's table. They heard all of his complaints and snide remarks and then the conversation with his aunt.

Apparently his aunt had just come from having a chat with his mother. She started to chastise him for his carelessness in front of Muggles. He didn't give a damn as they were just Muggles and could be obliviated or even better…. His aunt was not pleased with his remarks.

Then she yelled at him for hurting his mother and tried to instill in him a sense of Narcissa's worry and the sacrifices made for her son. "You were constantly in her thoughts and she has done all of this to get you to safety and prevent your life being ruined by taking that oath – which, from what the spy told the Goblins, Dumbdamn was going to force ALL STUDENTS, including first years, to take the oath after the holidays."

"He was first going to take over Gringotts, then inform the ICW and European Union that the entire Nation of Magical Britain had unanimously sworn their allegiance to the Light with the exception of the followers of Harry Dark Lord. Britain was going to use this to secede from the ICW and Union and form a new and 'enlightened paradise' of goodness, purity and Light and invite the rest of the Magical World to see sense and join them."

From the sounds of it Draco was merely staring at his aunt before replying, "How can you say it was _unanimous_ if the followers of Dickhead Harry didn't swear?" You could hear the smugness in his voice.

Then a fight broke out between aunt and nephew. The aunt was reminding and trying to drum into the head of her idiot nephew all the things that had happened in the past months since Harry Potter's incarceration and all the horrible things yet to come now that Dumbledore had truly taken control of Britain. "It is being said that Britain is going to be renamed but they haven't decided to let the rest of the world in on the new and exciting name at the moment."

Nephew retorted angrily, "It will probably be called Dumbledoreland or something like that. But who cares. I for one don't. What I do care about is how I am going to be forced to live in this…vile den of Muggleness. If this, this cesspool is the best that my mother can do…well, all I can say is she and YOU better see to it that this new Lord Black acknowledges me and makes me his heir. Then he can be _**taken care of**_ and I'll be the Lord and have a decent fortune. I am a Malfoy and deserve nothing less for _**I am meant to rule not some bastard**_."

The trio glanced at each other upon hearing that tidbit.

"Draco, you can't rely on doing such a thing especially once he allows you in the family. He will be YOUR LORD and you will owe him allegiance, obedience, respect…."

"I WILL NOT OWE THAT BASTARD ANYTHING!" Draco shouted angrily. "From all that we know he is nothing better than a bastard son of either Sirius Black or Regulus Black, hidden away like the by-blow which he is and I'd bet my broomstick – which I had to leave behind – that he was probably sired on a Mudblood or even a Muggle if he's Sirius Black's bastard."

"You don't know that," snapped his aunt. "What we do know is that this family needs him, desperately needs him for not only his wealth but his name. Even outside of Britain the Black Family has respect and power. He can protect us and no doubt could even be a leader in fight to take back Britain."

"As long as we have the money, power and respect – you did say Gringotts smuggled all the Black fortune out of Britain, correct – we don't need Britain. There are Black houses throughout Europe from what Mother always said. I'll live there with Mother and to hell with anybody or anything else."

There was a bit more fighting as the aunt tried to impress upon the dense dunderhead of a boy just how the world really worked and the situation they were in but then Draco grew bored and simply walked out on her.

"Well I need a drink," Steven said.

They listened to the other tapes, which contained general gossip and the feelings of the other 8 students. Mostly they were of the relief of having finally escaped. The other 15 had been left in Norway or been claimed by relatives and friends. The rest of them had come here because Draco's mother owned this hotel and Granger was going to be picked up by her parents as was Justin Finch-Fletchley by his. The Tonkses were trying to arrange a place for the other nine students. All of them were just grateful and happy to be here.

By then it was time to get ready to grab a quick dinner at the local pizza place then come back to prepare to attend the Lodge's New Year's Eve Party, if only to have something to do and see if they could meet with any of the other magicals.

Bella was strangely quiet. It had not gone unnoticed by Rabastan or Harry. It could be that it was New Year's Eve, a time when some people got sentimental (and melancholy) and the first time in decades that all the Black sisters were under the same roof. Or it could be that her nephew was proving to be such an ass and was already planning to _**take care of**_ the new Lord Black so that he could inherit. Family was everything to the Blacks and this plan of her nephew could be considered treason.

If nothing else, it was the Dark Lord's birthday and Bella was wondering what condition he was in, if he had a new body or still existed as a wraith. Did he have any faithful follower to help him let alone to spend his birthday with? But she didn't know and it upset her.

Trudy was being sent to make an appointment with Bonecrusher for January 3rd. Harry had already decided what he was going to do concerning Draco, but he still wanted to give him one more chance to start behaving.

But they were to be disappointed as Draco had gone back to his room after his lunch and hadn't come out since. Of course, he didn't like it and had started to magic it more to his liking, despite being warned not to use magic until he was given permission. They were the first magicals to live here besides Narcissa and she didn't use magic unless it was an emergency. Then it was usually Biddy who used her elfin magic which was a lot less untraceable than a wizard's magical signature.

Now that most of the Muggle renovations were done and she had gotten full control over her dowry, Narcissa was planning to have the Goblins install wards around the Lodge for safety. The wards she wanted would only allow her household and any magical employees to use magic without setting off an alarm. Any other magic used on the property of the Lodge would be detected immediately and it would be able to tell if the user was friend or foe.

Britain might be in turmoil and under martial law, but it was better to be careful because no doubt Dumbledore had his minions still out searching for Harry Dark Lord and those Britons who had escaped him.

But Draco didn't give a damn and after "making his room livable" he had room service bring up a tray for dinner. The "tray" consisted of pate de foie gras on toasted triangles, a tossed salad, Lobster Newberg on puff pastry with petit pois and candied carrots, with an English trifle for desert. He was the owner's son after all which is why he received the two bottles of iced champagne to have with dinner and afterwards. He could always order more if he ran out.

In celebration, the other 11 students were invited, but Astoria and the other young ones like Millicent Bulstrode's younger brother and the Creeveys had to stick with Coke. Even Hermione was dragged down by Andromeda to "mingle" and have some much needed fun, or at least conversation. Of the Lodge's other guests, only about half of them opted for the party as some of the younger ones went to the other hotels and two other couples were not the partying type.

The Ford-Hills were great minglers. Geoff had naturally zeroed in on the girls and Tracey Davis and Hannah Abbott and practically pounced on the handsome young Englishman. Even Astoria was giving him the eye but Daphne reined her in by reminding that he was the _Muggle boy_ who had possibly overheard Draco's ranting.

Hermione was moping because she didn't want to be here, she just wanted to be with her books. She had been without any books for nearly two months and was trying to make up for lost time. However, she couldn't help but overhear (yeah right) the good-looking boy mention that he was at school at such'n'such, which was the boys public school next to the girls school where she would have gone had she not gone to Hogwarts. Naturally she just had to investigate.

Hermione always accused Harry and Ron of not paying attention to her. Ron didn't but Harry had. He remembered her talking about the girls' public school she would have attended and he had looked for the most prestigious boys' school around her almost school to use as his school when he was crafting his new identity and had done a lot of research on both schools. Bella had wanted him to "go to" Eton or Harrow but Harry _also remember_ Justin Finch-Fletchley bragging that he had been down for Eton before getting his Hogwarts letter.

Hearing Geoff mention his school brought her out of her funk and she went to investigate. Of course she monopolized the entire conversation until music started playing and Geoff asked Tracey Davis to dance. But Hermione had decided that if she had to participate she might as well go all the way and she pounced on Geoff at every opportunity because "he was an excellent conversationalist and I am the only real Muggle here."

Somehow Geoff managed to accommodate each girl who sought him out and even take a break to chat with the guys on occasion. If he wanted to escape he just asked "what school do you attend" which usually sent people scattering - except Hermione. She had done thorough research on schools before Hogwarts and then followed up to use as an alibi in the Muggle world. Geoff wasn't getting away without a fight.

Meanwhile, Ruth Ford-Hill had struck up a conversation with Mrs. Tonks. The Ford-Hills were using the scenario of the "We-went-to-France-to-Steven's-relatives-and-had-to-leave-because-they-are-drunken-barbarians-so-we-left-and-we-ended-up-here." Andromeda was pleasant enough but thought the woman a bit pushy for her tastes. Clearly she was middle-class and a typical Muggle not worth her time but she was trapped and made the best of it.

For some strange reason Steven and Ted Tonks got along just fine talking about football clubs, the stock market and normal Muggle things which men who just met usually talk about.

No one had an inkling who the Ford-Hills really were and they liked it that way. Ruth was not able to corner Narcissa who was "working" and, it was evident, was very upset about something.

Midnight came and Geoff was quite surprised when Daphne, who had avoided him the entire evening, came over at midnight, pushed her dearest friend Tracey out of the way and kissed the Muggle boy wishing him a very Happy New Year. It was evident she had imbibed a lot of champagne and after the kiss left him there in a shocked but pleased state of mind.

If looks could kill Hermione, Tracey, Hannah and Astoria would be going to Azkaban for murder.

Steven had mentioned to his new friend Ted that the family was leaving the next day as they all had to get back to Britain and their jobs and school. He didn't miss the sad look on Ted's face, but the Muggleborn quickly recovered.

All in all it had been an eventful holiday season for the Ford-Hills from their escape from Azkaban, starting a new life, becoming a family, having some good times then the exposure, danger and having to flee their happy temporary home in Italy, to their stay at the ski lodge, the start of a war and discovering the real thoughts, ideas and plans of certain magicals.

They all just hoped that 1998 would not be as "exciting" as 1997 had been.

Everything belongs to JKRowling except the mad plots and the occasional character I have added. I make no money on this and just write to express my warped sense of imagination.

Chapter 13 – Lord Black Takes Control

On January 6, 1998, Narcissa and Draco and the Tonkses were summoned by Goblins at the Geneva Gringotts Branch. No excuses. Be there. Lord Black orders it.

Upon arrival they were shown into the office of the Geneva Bank's Head, Scar Maker. If the Goblin's name had been Scar Head Draco didn't think he'd survive the meeting due to laughing his ass off. But once the meeting started he would not be laughing much for a very long time.

Scar Maker did not say much only commanding them all to have a seat before starting the meeting.

"Lord Black has been reviewing the Family situation. We at Gringotts informed him of your personal needs and the requests for aid concerning the 27 students recently rescued from Hogwarts. Being an intelligent wizard, he also chose to have a personal investigation done. He sent one of his house elves to gather information. I will play this recording of some of the conversations which were overhead by the elf."

The recording started with Draco and the Greengrass girls sitting down for lunch. It was mostly of Draco complaining about everything from the menu, the food, the silverware, his mother, his aunt and her Mudblood husband, complaints about the Granger girl being rescued, snide remarks about his classmates and culminating with his opinion of Harry Dark Lord and what he would do to him. The conversation ended when Andromeda had made an appearance and the Muggle family and the Greengrass girls left the table.

Draco gave an inward sigh of relief as did his aunt as apparently the next conversation had not been recorded. But then Scar Maker played the next part. Silence reigned while the recording played.

Draco paled, Andromeda started thinking how she could possibly explain away her nephew's stupidity and lack of tact and then she heard exactly what she had said and she paled. Narcissa was an inch away from fainting and it was only her strict training and years of control that she was able to remain upright.

When the recording ended Scar Maker said nothing, he just glared waiting for one of the witches or wizard to comment.

Finally Draco could stand it no more and channeling his inner Ron Weasley shouted, "That is a lie! A slanderous, totally untrue distortion of the dinner conversation I had with my schoolmates and then later my aunt. The elf or someone controlling the miserable creature has made a poor and totally unconvincing forgery. Personally I believe it to be Harry Dark Lord as who else besides Albus Dumbledore would do such a thing or make such a deceitful, misrepresentation of me and my family.

"Would you swear on your magic that this is not true?"

"I give you my word as a Malfoy," Draco said proudly.

"Ah yes, the word of a Malfoy - all Goblins know how much that is worth."

Draco jumped up out of his seat, knocking the chair to the floor. "How dare you!"

"SIT DOWN DRACO!" commanded his mother. She then tried to explain to the Goblin the possible reasons why such things might have been said, citing all the terrible things the young boy had been through in the past two years, his treatment, the constant fear of losing his honor, his life, the stress of the sudden rescue, the shock of having to live in the Muggle world for perhaps the rest of his life and anything else she could think of to try and smooth over the situation.

When she was finished no one spoke. Then Scar Maker waved his hand over the record and played back the following parts:

"It will probably be called Dumbledoreland or something like that. But who cares. I for one don't. What I do care about is how I am going to be forced to live in this…vile den of Muggleness. If this, this cesspool is the best that my mother can do…well, all I can say is she and YOU better see to it that this new Lord Black acknowledges me and makes me his heir. Then he can be _**taken care of**_ and I'll be the Lord and have a decent fortune. I am a Malfoy and deserve nothing less for _**I am meant to rule not some bastard**_."

"Draco, you can't rely on doing such a thing especially once he allows you in the family. He will be YOUR LORD and you will owe him allegiance, obedience, respect…."

"I WILL NOT OWE THAT BASTARD ANYTHING!" Draco shouted angrily. "From all that we know he is nothing better than a bastard son of either Sirius Black or Regulus Black, hidden away like the by-blow which he is and I'd bet my broomstick – which I had to leave behind – that he was probably sired on a Mudblood or even a Muggle if he's Sirius Black's bastard."

"You don't know that," snapped his aunt. "What we do know is that this family needs him, desperately needs him for not only his wealth but his name. Even outside of Britain the Black Family has respect and power. He can protect us and no doubt could even be a leader in fight to take back Britain."

"As long as we have the money, power and respect – you did say Gringotts smuggled all the Black fortune out of Britain, correct – we don't need Britain. There are Black houses throughout Europe from what Mother always said. I'll live there with Mother and to hell with anybody or anything else."

Once again Scar Maker was silent. He just stared as only a Goblin can stare. No one said anything or even moved.

Finally Scar Maker spoke. "Lord Black is not pleased. He is especially distressed concerning your plans for his demise, but then who would not be."

Draco just sat there hoping this was all a very bad dream.

"Based on this recording, Gringotts could call in Aurors who would then listen to these recordings and no doubt immediately administer Veritaserum to verify if what was said was true. Tell me young Malfoy, or should I say Draco No Name, what do you think the outcome of this would be?"

Before Draco could answer, once again Narcissa interrupted trying to excuse her son until her sister touched her arm and said, "It's useless Cissy. There is nothing you can say. It is the truth."

Andromeda then asked Scar Maker, "What is Lord Black's decision?"

At the moment, he is not pressing charges or ordering the foolish boy's arrest.

Draco gave a sigh of relief before Scar Maker shouted, "However, before everyone leaves this room, all must give a solemn oath on their life and magic not to harm, seek someone out to cause harm to Lord Black, his family and heirs as well as…

"He has heirs?" shouted Draco. His aunt promptly kicked him hard in the shins to shut him up.

"Lord Black's business is his own and he does not have to inform you about anything concerning his private life. To continue…read this." Scar Maker shoved a piece of parchment containing the wording of the oath. The Tonkses looked it over, pronounced this fair and just and advised Narcissa and Draco to swear it.

However, Draco had another question to ask before he swore the oath.

"If I do this, will I be accepted as a member of the Family and can be known as Draco Black?"

"If you DO NOT swear this oath young No Name, you will not be leaving this office except in the company of Aurors. You will be arrested for threatening the life and to harm not only Lord Black but also Lord Harry Potter, whose life you also threatened."

"I only said that I'd crucio him not kill him." Draco said. Then his mother kicked him and said "We will all be swearing this oath NOW."

After the oath was sworn Scar Maker got down to business. "Since you have sworn not to injure or _**take care of**_ Lord Black you will not be arrested. However, due to your recent actions Lord Black will not at this time even consider taking you into the Black Family. Unless you are adopted by someone other than your Mother, you will be known as Draco No Name in the Magical World or Draco Greene in the Muggle World as that is the surname your Mother is using.

"Master Goblin," asked Narcissa hopefully, "You just said "Lord Black will not at this time consider taking Draco into the Family.' Does this mean that if Draco's behavior improves that Lord Black will eventually consider allowing him into the Family?"

The Goblin thought before replying. "I cannot speak on Lord Black's behalf on what he will or will not consider in the future. I would have to ask him if he would consider it. However, I would strongly advise at this point not to press the matter. It is my personal opinion that Lord Black is not in a temper to consider…such forgiveness…at this time. In fact, Lord Black has asked the Goblin Nation to advise Lord Potter, if they are in contact with that Lord, about your intentions towards him."

Draco had the utter stupidity to snort at that statement. Once again he was kicked in the shin by his aunt. Apparently Draco had been associating with Crabbe and Goyle for too long as he just had to go and say something stupid to the Goblins.

"That can't be done you know," said a smug Draco, "as Lord Potter, who everybody knows is a Half-blood son of a Muggleborn whore, is himself an outlaw, a Dark Lord and…"

"No he is not!" snapped a very angry Goblin. "He was illegally condemned by Albus Dumbledore, imprisoned without a trial, his being a dark lord cannot be proven as it is only the British Ministry and Albus Dumbledore who have accused him of committing certain crimes. And even if he were guilty of committing the crimes he is accused of, _**they could be considered justifiable reveng**_ e in the death of Ronald Weasley and the severe injury of Hermione Granger."

Draco's only reply was to give a look as if he smelled something horrible, but as that was a patented Malfoy look nobody really noticed.

But Scar Maker was not finished as he asked, "Tell me _Draco No Name_ ," he emphasized, "You were at school with him for five years. Is it your opinion that Harry Potter has the intelligence, magical power or the drive and determination to be a dark lord?"

" _Scar Head Potter_ ," emphasized Draco nastily, "is rather stupid, has always been average or below average in all of his classes," lied Draco, "isn't very powerful magically as, after all, he is a Half-blood who was raised by his Mudblood whore of a mother's Muggles relatives, and the only 'drive' I would say he has is to see if he can keep breaking his own record of embarrassing himself."

Narcissa hung her head in shame and embarrassment, Andromeda was fighting to control herself as Ted Tonks had stopped her from once again whacking her nephew as they were in the presence of a highly ranked Goblin. However, Ted had his own plans for the dumb kid once they were safely out of the bank and in the privacy of…anywhere.

Scar Maker was acting remarkably restrained for a Goblin, but then he knew something the witches and wizards in front of him didn't. Not only was all of this being recorded, but behind a magically hidden window Lord Black a/k/a Lord Harry Potter, was watching and listening to everything.

Rabastan was physically attempting to restrain Bella since one was not allowed to draw their wands in a Gringotts bank. Harry was just sitting in his chair listening, the only sign of a reaction was his jaw tightening. Rabastan knew him well enough to know that Harry was making plans for Draco No Name, plans which Draco would definitely not like.

"You are a very, very foolish human," was all that Scar Maker said, basically stopping the rant.

Once the "Draco problem was resolved" as much as it was humanly possible considering the circumstances, Andromeda broached the subject about Lord Black possibly giving aid and assistance to the students currently without a permanent place to go.

"Lord Black is still considering your request. Just so you know, his elf recorded the conversations of the other students having lunch, as well as some in their rooms and at a New Year's Eve celebration. He is making other investigations to determine if these students are true refugees seeking safety or if they are a secret minion of Dumbledore's."

"Granger is," shouted Draco. "Always was and always will be and I have no doubt…" Draco was once again silence by receiving physical pain as his mother pulled hard on his ear while his aunt shouted out a defense of the Granger girl.

"Hermione Granger was given Veritaserum, swore on her life and magic and it has been quite apparent for some time that Dumbledore has had no use for her since Harry Potter was sent to Azkaban. She suffered greatly throughout her sixth year and before her seventh year began she received threats from Ron Weasley because he blamed her for his not making Head Boy."

She sent copies of his threats to McGonagall who turned them over to Dumbledore and nothing was done except when her father informed them he was taking the girl out of Hogwarts. Then Severus Snape went to their house, harassed them all, and informed them that Granger had no choice but to return to Hogwarts. The first night they were back at Hogwarts Ron Weasley beat her nearly to death. She was still in a coma when he had a flying accident and died but for some unknown reason Molly Weasley blamed her and started a vendetta and…well she suffered more than anyone since Harry Potter went to Hogwarts."

"So you just should have left her there to die as she is just a worthless, filthy…"

"Her parents own 15% of this lodge," his mother snapped. "They too had to leave Britain and have been of great help trying to rescue…."

"You are in business with Muggle filth and that's why Granger got rescue when a deserving Pureblood should have been given the chance. I'm surprised you just didn't start a brothel since you have been selling the family honor of the…"

WHACK! Narcissa slapped her son. Slapped him hard. She then turned and left the room.

"You are such a fucking fool," added his aunt before she too left.

"Draco No Name," Scar Maker started saying, "You really are a fool, an idiot and a complete…ass. Perhaps it would be in everyone's best interest if you were sent back to your equally fool of a father. Of course, he wouldn't take you back as he must now try to marry another heiress if he is to survive – if he could find one in Britain, and she would have him. And if he somehow succeeded, he would probably be obligated to turn over this new fortune to Emperor Dumbdamn."

"I doubt anybody would take the kid," added the usually quiet Ted Tonks. "What does he have to offer anyone other than his insufferable pride? He's always just coasted along on BOTH his parents' coattails and now daddy has nothing left, not even his soul. All he really has left is his mother's love and unless he is even dumber than he looks and has been acting, he better do some serious apologizing."

With that said Ted Tonks also left the room.

"You are now dismissed Draco No Name," stated Scar Maker, pointing the door to Draco. The boy had nothing else left to do but leave.

Although he would never admit it, not even to himself, he wasn't being deliberately obtuse he was just scared out of his mind. Part of him knew just how bad things were in Britain and how truly fortunate he had been to escape. He had avoided taking the oath and would now not be enslaved like his father and so many others had been. He was reunited with his beloved mother and a few fellow Slytherins, such as the lovely, highly desirable Greengrass girls.

He had so much to be thankful for, yet his pride could not allow it. His mother, his elegant, beautiful, superior mother was working, for a living, as a Muggle, serving them as a common hotel owner. And she didn't even own the hotel, just a part of it. It wasn't even a good hotel as it was a lodge of some sort. And she expected him to live…such a life?

 _ **If his father hadn't been enslaved by the oath**_ , he would have arranged for things to be done better. They all would have escaped and fled to one of the many properties the family owned. Malfoy homes were always heavily warded so they would be protected and continue to live the life of luxury and privilege which was the right and proper place for a Malfoy.

Despite her family name and upbringing, his mother was only a mere woman, without proper guidance and there was no doubt in Draco's mind that she had been coerced and probably spelled by her dishonorable and disowned older sister into the mess they now found themselves in. Yes that must be it.

But his father had been forced into swearing that oath. It hadn't really been his father's fault. It was the fault of the Dark Lord who had been stupid enough to be killed by a 15 month old son of a Mudblood whore. It was Vold…Volde….oh hades, VOLDEMORT'S fault for not being the Dark Lord he was purported to be. It had only been his father's wits and power (not to mention large amount of gold) which had save them and many others at Voldemort's first defeat.

However, even his father hadn't believed that Voldemort couldn't die and would come back once again. He had, and it had all started up once again. Then once again, stupid, idiotic, talentless, weak-will, weak-magical, ugly, worthless, Dumbledore lackey of the worst sort, brainless, pitiful, dung head Potter had once again lucked out and killed Voldemort and in front of witnesses this time.

It had only been a bizarre sense of justice, a laughable twist of fate that Dumbledore then turned on Potter and condemned him – unjustly even Draco had to admit – to the hell of Azkaban. Oh how they all had laughed…until father and the others had to take the oath to survive and not to join Potter and the remaining Lestranges in their fate.

Things just crumbled after that. Lives were ruined more by the "Light Lord Dumbledore" than had ever been by Voldemort and it was done alarmingly fast. It was too much for Draco to understand. Even his father couldn't do anything except grovel before the old coot and obey all the inane, worthless, soul-destroying orders given by Dumbledore.

Dumbledore was destroying their world in the name of the Light but even the likes of Crabbe and Goyle quickly realized that Dumbledore was not really a Light Lord. He was the darkest of the dark merely garbed in the cloak of light. At school there had been rumors that were Voldemort somehow to come back again, even Half-bloods would be clamoring to follow him.

There was talk of following Harry Dark Lord if he was truly gathering an army. As long as you wouldn't have to serve Dumbledore….well even Potter looked good. Not to Draco as he did have his pride but he would not condemn others foolish enough to join the crusade that Potter hadn't started yet.

So it was now up to Draco to save them all, especially his mother. Somehow he must take his rightful place as a Lord and guide his mother and the Purebloods imprisoned at the Muggle hell hole they found themselves placed in, and lead them back to the right path.

Draco had immediately started making plans once he left the Goblin's office. He met up with his mother, aunt and the scum which was his…uncle by his aunt's unfortunate marriage. They port keyed back to the rubbish tip they came from but before Draco could do or say anything, he was hit with a stunner.

When he woke up, he was in "his room" the wretched place so far beneath him. It consisted of one room containing only a double bed, a small (by Malfoy standards) wardrobe and bureau which contained the pitiful Muggle rags which had been provided for him, a small table with a small chair, a very small desk with another chair in front of it which matched the table's chair, a bigger chair, no doubt for a Muggle to relax in, a dubious box-like thing which was called a television and a door which led to a minute bathroom containing only a sink with an overhead mirror with three shelves on each side to hold "things" such as toiletries, a toilet and a shower stall.

There was a large window overlooking the mountains with what a Muggle would consider a decent view, but it just would not do for a Malfoy. Draco was very annoyed.

He called for his mother's house elf. She didn't respond so he called again, then again. After a few minutes he realized she was not coming. Hmmm, wonder why? Draco then noticed several things on the small table. One of them was a letter. He reached for his wand to summon the letter but HIS WAND WAS GONE.

Worried, he got up, went over to the table and opened the letter. The following are the contents of the letter.

"Dear Draco:

I know you are angry, confused and disappointed regarding the circumstances you find yourself in. Too bad – get used to things as they are. The alternative is too unbearable to consider.

First, I want to inform you of just how ashamed I am of you, you my only beloved son. I know that you consider yourself a Malfoy and _'a Malfoy is entitled to a certain way of living, certain standards, complete respect, to having absolute power, a position in society, etc., etc., etc.'_

Whereas that _**was**_ entirely true, it was due to not just _**being a Malfoy**_ but mostly _**due to the wealth and the power which the wealth brought with it**_. Were you to look through a magical glazing crystal and see what it happening now in Britain, you would see the position your father now finds himself in. It is not to be envied. I wonder if without his wealth he will be considered of no further use to Dumbledore. One can only fear what would be the consequences if Dumbledore decided to 'deal with the Malfoy problem' or whatever he would term it.

The money is gone – all of it. All of his money, the money of the Parkinsons, Notts, the Rookwoods, Yaxleys – everyone's money is gone thanks to the invasion of Gringotts. How your father or anybody else will live I do not know.

Now we have only ourselves to rely on. I had managed to set aside some money your father didn't know about as it was in a Muggle bank. It was just enough to buy my share in this hotel and make the necessary renovations. I left with nothing but the clothes on my back and even Biddy couldn't bring me anything when she escaped because of the trackers that were placed on all my possessions. There were even trackers on Biddy which could only be removed by the Goblin curse breakers which proved to be very expensive.

I just recently received custody of my dowry. It has always been kept separate by the terms of my marriage contract and the Goblins froze it until my annulment could be complete. Your father has constantly tried to get it but had been prevented by the Goblins as per the marriage contract.

Although it is a very large sum, as befit a daughter of the House of Black, I must be very careful of how and for what I use it for. I have already made arrangements to divide it into shares and sent it to accounts at other Gringotts and Muggle banks. This is for safety measures. This money is ALL WE HAVE LEFT and unless I make money in the Muggle world, it will not increase.

I have made out my Will and although you are my only heir, there are certain provisions in the Will that will….prevent you from planning my death to obtain access to this money. Whereas this might sound shocking and harsh…well as you like to say…YOU ARE A MALFOY. And I am a Black – so nothing more needs to be said or put into writing regarding this matter!

Due to the problems in Britain, anyone holding British citizenship is for the moment banned from investing in any magical businesses. It is very complicated to explain in a letter so you will find a report from the Goblins outlining the circumstances. Updates are being posting weekly so once we receive and read them, I will send them onto you.

The next is extremely difficult for me to say, or to put into words, but it must be done. Your behavior at the bank was disgraceful. That is why you are now being punished. When you were small and misbehaved you were sent to your room. This is what is happening now.

I know you are saying (probably screaming, shouting and ranting) that you are an adult – legally, physically and mentally. However, your behavior proves that you are not an adult EMOTIONALLY. Your inexcusable behavior cannot and WILL NOT be tolerated.

Therefore you will be confined to your room until such time as it is determined you have decided to act like an adult.

Your meals will be magically delivered three times a day. There will always be books for you to read and YOU WILL READ THEM as they will give you an insight into the workings of the Muggle world. I know you will refuse to lower yourself to reading these things but until you do and pass a written test on each book, you will not be allowed out of your room.

The box-like item is a Muggle device called a television. It is on the order of the Wizarding Wireless but much more advanced as it shows moving pictures. It is very informative as well as a source of entertainment and knowledge. There is a sheet of paper giving detailed instructions on it use. I advise you avail yourself of this item.

There will be no communication with me or anybody else until you have done the reading and passed the tests. Then and only then will 'we talk.'

I know you will not believe me at this moment but you are my life, my reason for living and you always have been since the day of your birth. But as much as I love you, I cannot in good conscious give into your demands as it isn't just about us. It is about our world and those in it.

Hopefully once Dumbledore is dead, Britain will be able to return to the rest of the Magical World, but until then, those of us who have had the good fortune to escape must live and give aid and comfort to those who need it.

For your own good I hope you will listen to reason and soon take your place among your fellow Britons and work towards reclaiming our native land.

Remember I do and always will love you.

Your loving mother,

Narcissa"

Draco, being Draco and a Malfoy, threw the biggest temper tantrum of his life. Despite not having a wand, he threw things around the room, breaking as much as possible. He especially did his best to demolish that Muggle television device. He exhausted himself but had finally managed to destroy the room to his satisfaction.

His one regret was that when he attempted to throw the television out the window to break the damn thing and make his escape, it was evident that the windows had been spelled because the television merely bounced off the windows and if he hadn't quickly ducked the loathsome device would have hit him.

Now the only thing left for him to do was to wait until the elf appeared with his dinner and reported the results of his wrath back to his mother. That would teach her!

Well it didn't because as it said in the letter, his meals would be delivered magically. His dinner appeared on the table – the one he had smashed. The tray holding his food and drink, slid off the broken table and landed on the floor. Well he could miss a meal as he knew that would upset his mother.

After an hour the food and drink disappeared, although the stains they left remained on the carpet. The same thing happened with Draco's breakfast and then his lunch. Didn't the worthless elf report the broken dishware and ruined, uneaten food? Apparently not because when dinner arrived it met the same fate.

Draco was very hungry by this time. He managed to salvage the two dinner rolls and ate them. He had been drinking water from the spigot in the bathroom. After his ruined dinner disappeared he decided he better do something with the table and removing the legs, he straightened the table top. When breakfast arrived safely he was able to eat the first real meal since his imprisonment.

He swore vengeance on that damn elf as it was clear the thing hadn't reported the ruined meals to his mother as no matter how angry she was at her child, she would not let him be treated so abominably.

He had ruined his bed also. He had jumped on it until it broke and then jumped on the box spring until that was also totally useless. For the past two days he had been sleeping on the mattress and a rolled up blanket as he had torn the pillows apart. His mother would soon give in.

But she didn't. At the end of the week, a test on the first book arrived. There was a note attached on the test from his mother. She mentioned she knew all about his outburst and the condition of his room.

"Since we spelled the books so you couldn't destroy them, hopefully you were bored enough to read the first one. You know the rules. Take the test and if you pass it you might get a new pillow. Don't try to look up the answers as you would have had to have read the book and you only have 15 minutes to complete the test."

Since Draco hadn't read the book he didn't bother to take the test. He did not get a new pillow and no dessert with dinner. His clothes were not being washed either. That was truly outrageous. Damn elf.

This behavior went on for another two days. The test arrived with another note mentioning that his laundry hadn't been done and wouldn't until he passed the test. If not, well then he could wash his own clothes.

Another week passed and still Draco held firm to "his ideals" but then he did have to break down and figure out how to wash his underwear as things were getting disgusting. Then he noticed that some of his least favorite foods were on the menu, such as liver, lima beans, cauliflower without any type of sauce (which was the only way he would eat it) and one totally disgusting vegetable which he had never eaten and never would again (it was overly boiled okra).

He had been so bored! The first few weeks he had his scheming to keep him occupied and he did read the Goblin reports. These reports were the stuff of nightmares.

Besides the boredom the final straw was a luncheon which was unidentifiable. He would later learn that the soup was not made from scratch but came out of a tin. So did the miserable excuse for a pasta/tomato sauce _thing_ and the overcooked green beans which he had been forced to eat.

He read the first book.

This all went on for six very long weeks. Once he had read four books and passed the tests, he awoke one morning to find his laundry had been done and the television device had been replaced. He still didn't have a pillow and slept on a mattress but he was clean as was the room except for the stains on the carpet from the first two days when the table was broken.

The food had improved a bit but he was still not receiving dessert. As much as he hated to admit, the television was interesting and it soon became the only thing making his life worth living.

More books were delivered, more tests were taken and the television got more interesting. After three months he woke up to a clean (no stains) room and fixed furniture. If it wasn't against his training as a Malfoy, he would have cheered.

There were now magazines being delivered and both Muggle and Magical newspapers. The Goblin reports had stopped as the newspapers were the main source of what was happening in Britain. The news there only got worse and it sadden Draco.

He worried constantly about his father. He even worried about the fates of Pansy, Crabbe and Goyle. There was no news at all concerning Harry Dark Lord. Draco was not surprised but if he had to admit it, if only to himself, he missed Potter. But those had been the good old days when Draco Malfoy really ruled Hogwarts and he got to taunt and abuse Potter and Dumbledore had allowed it. Sometimes it even seemed like he encouraged it.

Potter had been too stupid to realize what was happening, that he was nothing more than a patsy and pawn of Dumbledore. Hades, Potter didn't even know his real status in the world no doubt thanks to the Weasleys, but still Draco had always found it strange that nobody else had told the boy – especially the like of Rita Skeeter.

Why hadn't Longbottom or Susan Bones? Hades, Sirius Black should have told the fool as he was Potter's godfather. But apparently no one had and now that he had had the time to think about it, Dumbledore had to have commanded it but why he didn't know.

The months passed and Draco received more books. Many were Muggle school books as apparently his mother wanted him to take a test of some sort in the Muggle World. His aunt had written him a note saying that the only way he was going to get out of having to work like a Muggle was to get admitted to a Muggle university.

Draco didn't know if he was disgusted or terrified at that prospect.

But the months in solitude and forced reading had beaten him down, sapped some of the Malfoy spirit out of him. School was better than a job.

He was starting to accept his fate.

Everything belongs to JKRowling except the mad plots and the occasional characters I have added. I make no money on this and just write to express my warped sense of imagination.

Chapter 14 – New Life

Eventually Draco was allowed out of his prison. He was still mad at his mother, but could see the reasons why she had forced him to learn Muggle ways.

Things in Britain were abominable. The entire country was now a pariah in the Magical World. Entering or leaving the country was prohibited by the Emperor Dumbdamn as well as the ICW and the European Union.

The Goblins had closed off all commerce to Britain. On December 29th the Ministry led forces once again attacked the bank using Muggle weapons. Something called a missile had been shot into the bank causing it to collapse to its very foundations. Two of them had been used, the first for killing the dragon and the first line of defense and once they were destroyed, another one was sent down the many levels of the bank.

Despite the magical wards of both Goblins and wizards, a small earthquake registered in London. The Muggle government was furious. They had to come up with a believable story and although it calmed down the most hysterical citizens, investigative reporters were on the trail of what had to be a government cover-up. The Muggle government was also doing their own investigations.

Eventually the entire story had come out that Dumbledore had "convinced" many Muggleborns serving in the Muggle military to rally to the cause of magical freedom. Most had probably been spelled to do his bidding because the new rights in the Magical World he had promised them had not been enough to tempt them. They were too familiar with just how things worked in Magical Britain and only a fool would jeopardize their life in the Muggle World for the false promises of the Magical, especially any promises made by Albus Dumbledore.

The British Muggle government was demanding not only restitution for the equipment "borrowed" but a trial for those who were the guilty parties. This was when Dumbledore took over. He apologized to the Muggle government saying that those who were the leaders of this unfortunate revolution had already been swiftly punished in the Magical World. Some people had been either given The Kiss by the six remaining Dementors or had been thrown through the veil.

"Although," he added with his sad Headmaster's face on, "many of those misguided individuals were killed in the first onslaught."

That was the official version of the Ministry of Magic and the Muggle government must accept it. They didn't and official relations were broken off between Muggle and Magical Britain. It was then that Albus Dumbledore decided to "save" Britain.

Any wizard who was capable of doing so, such as Unspeakables, the few remaining senior Aurors, and mostly Dumbledore, placed all sections constituting Magical Britain under the Fidelius charm. To successfully perform magic of this magnitude some very strong magic had to be used. It was very, very dark magic, but since Albus Dumbledore approved and demanded it to be used, it had to be good, right? One guess who was the secret keeper for everything?

After the monumental task was accomplished, Dumbledore gather all of those who had assisted him in the magic and obliviated their memories. Only Albus Dumbledore could have that much knowledge and use it properly. At least he left them alive, but then many good wizards and witches had been lost in the "Goblin Rebellion of 1997" as it was now called.

Now not only was Magical Britain under Dumbledore's complete control, only he could let you find your home and live in it. Many left their home in the morning to go to their job and not only could they not find their place of business they couldn't find their own home and family.

Consequently, anybody who did not take the oath was obliged to now if they wanted to live anywhere, even on their estates. Dumbledore had to give you the secret location of not only your home, but your place of business, the Ministry, Diagon Alley, Hogwarts, every shop in the country.

Therefore every person in Magical Britain, whether wizard, witch or child had to swear on their life and magic a new specialized oath to Albus Dumbledore. Otherwise they would exist in limbo and never find their way to home, family or a life. Not only that but they couldn't leave any magical parts of Britain due to the dark spells Dumbledore had cast.

Dumbledore enjoyed making certain people beg, but then he always did. Everyone was totally and completely under his control. They could not live without him.

The economy was in shambles. Most of the money in Gringotts had been removed to other banks but the money still in vaults was not enough to run an economy. Also, gold may be destroyed especially when blown into teeny, tiny pieces. Summoning charms had to be used to first find and then mold gold bits and dust into pieces large enough to melt down and mint new money.

After all which could be recovered was recovered, what remained was insufficient. There were some wizards (but mostly witches) who had wisely kept money in their homes for emergencies or Goblin rebellions. Others simply did not make enough money to warrant having a vault. Others had been using a Muggle invention called the credit card which Gringotts had started offering after many Muggleborns had asked about them.

People such as the Malfoys had a bottomless bag and accounts with vendors which were paid quarterly and, therefore, they rarely went to the bank unless they had special business. When he found out about losing all of his vaults and the money contained therein, Lucius Malfoy took the unprecedented step of having his house elves scour the entire manor looking for loose change. He personally cast summoning spells looking for anything which could be hiding coins.

He called for the manor's inventory list and made notes of anything made of gold or silver or other precious metals. The Malfoy family jewels were still at the manor but now he took the precaution of hiding them in special places just in case he was robbed (and not by robbers but by Dumbledore or his lackeys). If he ever managed to escape Britain, he would need something to live on. As things stood now how would most people survive?

Malfoy Manor was mostly decorative. Oh there were some crops raised on the outer parts of the Manor which could feed the family, elves and animals but just enough and not more. There were kitchen gardens, potion ingredient gardens, flower gardens and even the occasional decorative rock garden. The Malfoys had always been self-sufficient for food which could be home grown, but these crops were raised on other Malfoy properties.

The more exotic potion ingredients, most of the spices, wine, liquor, salt, vinegar, cheese and meat had to be bought. The Malfoys entertained A LOT, so on occasion they had to resort to using vendors, as who would go to the trouble to raise large fish, eels, venison, etc. when they could simply buy it.

Clothes Lucius had more than enough to last his lifetime. He had a vast wine cellar and a store of potion ingredients but that was if they weren't commandeered.

One of the dirty little secrets of Magical Britain was that wizards could not raise most of their own food. Therefore it was logical and much cheaper to purchase food and spices, etc. from Muggles. It was then sold in Magical shops and the vendors even made a large profit. Now how could people buy food when relations with Muggles had been completely broken?

Naturally the great Albus Dumbledore had the perfect solution. All foods would be raised on the specialized estates. At the moment Lucius only knew where Malfoy Manor was located. Dumbledore had not seen fit to inform him of the locations of the other Malfoy properties which grew most of the Malfoy supplies. It was the same with the other huge landowners or those who owned more than one property.

While that did make sense, it also meant that Dumbledore would be controlling the food supplies. Everything from shops to jobs was already under his control and if for some unfortunate reason you or a family member displeased Dumbledore and you were discharged from your employment…..

It was a nightmare and, as usual, there was nothing which anybody could do anything about.

Lucius sat alone in his home. He couldn't have visitors until Dumbledore saw fit to give them the location to Lucius' home. Thus at the moment he could not visit anyone unless he ran into them at the places he was allowed to go. The only places he knew the locations of besides his Manor was Diagon Alley, the Ministry of Magic, Hogsmeade and Hogwarts and St. Mungo's. THAT WAS ALL!

He held a glass of brandy in his hand, sipping at it while looking out the window. He saw the beautiful gardens he possessed and wondered it some of them would shortly be growing not the roses, flowering bushes, exotic plants and flowers but green beans, cucumbers and turnips. He winced.

How long would he be able to enjoy the contents of his wine cellar? Would the contents be redistributed on Dumbledore's orders? He couldn't be stopped should he desire to throw a party or reward one of his lackeys with Lucius' good brandy or wine. He shuddered at the thought of a Weasley "chug-a-lugging" his fifty year old claret or mixing his Napoleon brandy with a Muggle fizzy drink called Coal or Coke or something like that.

He wondered where his wife – ex-wife – was. Was Draco with her? Although he had at first feared she had been kidnapped by whatever Dumbledore was calling Potter nowadays, it appeared she had escaped Briton and arranged for Draco to be saved. For that he was truly grateful.

Narcissa was a carefully raised, delicate flower of a woman but he knew she had nerves of steel when the occasion arose. She would fight like a nesting dragon to protect her child. But how would Draco cope?

Like Lucius, Draco had been raised to be a prince, a ruler and leader of wizards. Lucius had to admit that it had only been his wealth and family name which had given him the power and influence he possessed. That wealth and power had been hard won by his ancestors. Lucius had cunning and a ruthlessness which enabled him to use this power, but what about Draco?

No, Draco was still a child and always would be. It was Lucius' fault as he had spoiled the boy because he was the only child he would ever sire. During the first war, Lucius had been hit by a sterility curse which had nearly killed him. James Potter or Sirius Black had done the deed of that he was certain. They were both near each other in the fighting.

After being hit and surviving, Lucius would "accidentally" run into either or both wizards at social or Ministry functions. Black especially wouldn't say anything to Lucius, but he would smile like an ass, seek out James and then they would both laugh. Hopefully they were both rotting in the deepest, darkest pits of hell.

Lucius had wanted Draco to attend Durmstrang. He even had the boy tutored in German. He hadn't wanted him to attend Hogwarts simply because Dumbledore still ruled. But as Narcissa pointed out, Draco wouldn't survive a month at a school like Durmstrang.

"It's both our faults," she had told him. "It is my fault because he is my baby and my only son. It is your fault because you wanted him to look up to you, worship you and you taught him that he could always call upon the power and influence of the Malfoys but you never taught how to obtain or how to truly use that power and influence. While you live he will use your name to strike fear into the hearts of others and gather his allies in Slytherin because you are his father. He hasn't developed his Slytherin cunning because of his dependence on you."

He had been angry with her, but unfortunately agreed with her assessment the first time he heard his son say, "When my father hears of this…." Draco was still doing this in his seventh year even after Lucius had lost his power.

Lucius' life was over. He realized it and admitted it to himself in the silence of his mind. He just hoped Draco survived and learned the lessons which Lucius hadn't taught him because he hadn't learned them himself.

He raised his glass in a toast "To Narcissa and Draco" swallowed the contents of the glass and then looked at the ceremonial dagger on his desk. He had an important decision to make, and make soon.

Everything belongs to JKRowling except the mad plots and the occasional characters I have added. I make no money on this and just write to express my warped sense of imagination.

Chapter 15 – Three Years Later

Three years later the subjects of Lucius Malfoy's depressed thought were safe and making a life for themselves. Narcissa's hotel was doing good business, the indoor poor/gym/spas attracted a better clientele and she had even enlarged the original hotel by ten specialty suites. She had also managed to buy out the original owner (using some of Dumbledore's methods of convincing the Muggles). Her sister and the Grangers still retained their shares, for the moment at least, until she could buy them out.

She didn't touch the capital from her dowry as the Goblins had invested a large part of it in the Muggle World and it was finally earning real money. She had purchased a few house elves on the sly so that saved on paying a human staff. She had never worked harder in her life, but she had also never achieved a greater satisfaction other than giving birth to Draco.

It had taken Draco over a year to come to terms with his new life. He had to learn all about Muggles and how to live in their world. The Goblins provided him with the proper legal paperwork such as passports, school records, and a driver's license, but Draco had to learn Muggle math, history and a few other subjects as well as learning how to drive a car.

Unlike his uncle by marriage Rabastan, he could take or leave the act of driving and/or owning a car. It was merely a useful tool which he preferred not to use. He absolutely refused to learn how to use a washer/dryer, a lawn mower or a snow blower, no matter how hard his mother tried to convince him to "just in case he had to use one" someday.

He was currently attending a Muggle university studying business and finance. Anything else he felt distasteful. The really rich Purebloods had investments in Muggle stocks because that was where the real money was made as magical economies tended to be stagnate

He absolutely refused to get a Muggle girlfriend. Since Dumbledore could no longer force people back to Britain (or so it was said and desperately hoped), he did go to magical centers in the main European cities to socialize with his own kind. He didn't believe it at first but apparently Purebloods on the Continent knew more about Muggles, their technology, their history and their customs. He was surprised to learn that many Continental magicals went onto Muggle universities to further their education.

That was the reason he was attending a Muggle university. Whereas the Goblins helped many Purebloods with their investments, Draco wanted to learn the ins and outs of investments and world finance if only because of what happened in Britain. His father had delayed his instruction in finances until he would graduate from Hogwarts as in his opinion (which was the only correct opinion in the Malfoy household), he had other more important things to learn first and Lucius would be around for a long, long time so his son could learn by observing.

Draco did keep up with his magical studies, although mostly it was learning dark arts, dueling and other things which he considered worth his attention. Despite what he had promised his mother, if he ever ran into Harry Potter, he would definitely kill him. Yes he would kill him, slowly, painfully and Potter would be begging for death but Draco wouldn't allow it for a long, long time. Unless, of course, he had no other choice but to kill him quickly to avoid capture or something like that.

Like most of the Magical Britons, Draco blamed Harry Potter for the state of the world and the destruction of their lives. If he had just had the common decency to have let the Dark Lord kill him – as was his right – none of this misery and Dumbledore's reign would have happened. But nooooo, Potter had to be a stupid Gryffindor and once again kill the Dark Lord and in front of witnesses so that this time there was no doubt that Potter could defeat a Dark Lord.

What was even worse was that Potter had escaped from Azkaban and not been heard from again. Or so it was said. The Tonkses had the theory, shared by many, that Dumbledore had faked the escape of the boy in order to have someone to blame for Dumbledore's mistakes or evil plans.

"It makes much more sense," his Aunt Andromeda had opined many times, "He has Potter escaping with Bellatrix and Rabastan. Those three would never, could never be allies. Bella, if she didn't kill Potter first, would take him to the Dark Lord for a reward and failing that, she would have dropped off his battered, tortured, horribly killed body in a public place where there would be too many witnesses to deny the fact that she had killed Harry Potter and avenged her Dark Lord."

"Unless he killed Bella and Rabastan first," her annoying Muggleborn husband always added in.

Then his aunt always snapped back with "There was no one to help them escape so it couldn't have happened." An argument would then break out and if others were present, like Daphne, Tracey Davis or even the Mudblood Granger, they too would add in their hypothesis and Draco would just leave the room.

He hated anything Potter, always had and always would. No matter what, somehow Potter had managed to survive, if only by his damnable luck, for the sole purpose of annoying everybody. Draco knew he was out there somewhere doing something stupid or at least planning it. Hopefully he was working in a dead-end Muggle job, alone and friendless, without hope and no access to a wand or anything magical.

Then someday Potter would be dumb enough to run into Draco Malfoy who would then do a public service by finally ridding the world of Harry Potter and doing it as slowly and painfully as possible. That was Draco's dream.

The other thing which truly infuriated Draco beyond reason was that Granger was attending the same university as he was. Because her parents owned a share in his mother's business as well as being members of the organization his aunt and her husband helped found, their paths crossed if only during holidays such as Christmas. If he wanted his presents or, more importantly his allowance, he had to be in attendance at least part of the time and try to act civil. It always spoiled his holidays.

Mercifully they rarely ran into each other during school except when Granger ventured out in the magical sections of the university to "socialize" and for some unexplained reason, people actually talked to her and not even just to insult her. In fact, much to his disgust, Granger had hooked up with a fellow student. Granted he was merely a Half-blood, but he was well thought of by the magical student community.

Draco had not found someone as yet, or at least someone he considered acceptable. There were just a few Pureblood girls attending these social occasions but none of them were interesting. He was not allowed to use his real last name and he was positive if they knew he was a Malfoy, they would be swarming all over him.

Pureblood girls were carefully raised (unless your name was Weasley) and just wouldn't fall for someone even if they had the extreme good looks, charming manners and were magically powerful, which Draco knew he was. No they were just playing it the way they had been brought up. Besides, Draco's allowance was not large so he couldn't afford to dress as well as he ought to give the girls a hint to his true heritage.

At least he had kept his standards unlike some Purebloods he could mention. Tracey Davis was a Half-blood to begin with so it was acceptable for her to date Half-bloods. Daphne Greengrass did have her admirers among Purebloods, Half-bloods and of course since she was forbidden fruit Mudbloods had dared to cast longing glances at her. Draco had always been willing to give her a chance, even when at Hogwarts, but for some strange reason, she avoided him as much as possible even though she knew his true heritage and desirability.

This had worried him for a while but then he had found out why she wasn't paying him the attention and respect which was his due. She was insane.

Yes, she was insane. Apparently her mental faculties had been unable to cope with what had happened during their last two years at Hogwarts and she had had a breakdown. That was the only answer.

He had finally wormed it out of Tracey Davis. Daphne Greengrass, heiress of the Noble House of Greengrass, the acknowledged great beauty of Slytherin House, the cool, calm perfectly composed Pureblood princess had, had…well she had gone insane. That was the only explanation and it was very sad.

Even his mother had been shocked speechless when she heard about Daphne. It was so bad that Granger, of all people, was also shocked beyond words and this fact alone warranted a trip to a mind healer as since when did Granger keep quiet about anything?

Yes, Daphne Greengrass was so far gone that she, she, SHE WAS DATING A MUGGLE! Not a MuggleBORN, but a bona fide MUGGLE. Narcissa tried to rationalize the girl's behavior saying the boy must be from a wealthy family and the poor girl was only trying to get back a bit of status in some world and the money was the chief attraction.

It was Granger who had done some research (naturally) concerning the Muggle and she stated that he was not high born, or particularly wealthy but….middle class. Narcissa had had to stifle a sob or two upon hearing this pronouncement.

Aunt Andromeda's Muggleborn husband had countered with an "I'm middle class and I'm a perfectly wonderful bloke."

Naturally he received dreadful glares from Narcissa, Draco and even Hermione Granger. But then Granger had given the reason why the Muggle boy was so unacceptable. He was the same Muggle who had been staying at the hotel that New Year's Eve when they had arrived. As Draco had been brooding in his room and missed the party, and Narcissa had been occupied attending to the numerous things which needed to be done as well as worrying about Draco, Andromeda had to tell the tale.

"I remember him. He was that very handsome, charming boy and all you girls were swarming over him."

"Actually he was the only boy – well the only boy who wasn't a refugee from Hogwarts – and we were not swarming," snapped Granger.

"Looked like swarming to me," added Ted Tonks.

"We were only talking to him because he was new, was capable of conversing intelligently and was British, attending a very good school and was only here due to a family holiday," Hermione said in her haughtiest voice. "He represented a little bit of home, the home we had all just lost."

Ted actually snorted before saying, "Yeah, a little bit of home who even you were drooling over and doing your very best to keep the other girls away from him so you…."

"Don't be ridiculous," Hermione shouted. "I was doing no such thing. I was just talking to him and we were getting along fine until…"

"Until at the stroke of midnight when you were going in for the kill, Daphne pops up from nowhere and lays one on him," Ted added.

A slight disagreement had broken out which had amused Draco greatly at the time. Granger was jealous and the Muggle probably had been trying to escape from her clutches and avoid a fate almost worse than receiving a Cruciatus – being kissed by Granger – and Daphne had rescued him.

Apparently they had met by accident at university and started dating. It was disgusting but there was nothing Draco could do about it so if Daphne wanted to ruin her life that was her prerogative and only proved that she was definitely insane.

Since Daphne had chosen to ruin herself, she was avoided by Draco and Hermione, although her best friend Tracey still associated with her. It was an unwritten law that a Muggle could not be brought to the magical section of the university or even be allowed to come to the magical bar where the magical students hung out to socialize. Therefore they rarely saw Daphne as her major and the major of her Muggle were different than Draco's, Hermione's and Tracey's. That was fine with everybody.

So Daphne got to hang out with Geoffrey Ford-Hill and even had been invited to meet his parents. Mr. Ford-Hill had job at the university so he was always around. Mrs. Ford-Hill stayed home and "kept house" as well as being a part time writer. Daphne was not told what type of books Mrs. Ford-Hill wrote. She had even looked up the name Ford-Hill and possible aliases like Hill or Ford trying to find out what type of books the woman wrote, but without success.

Daphne had come to the conclusion that either Mrs. Ford-Hill was only pretending to be a writer or she wrote the type of books which were not considered "proper" for a middle class British woman to admit writing. So if indeed she was an author, she wrote bodice rippers or porn.

It was really a bit of both. Bella was bored once the boys went off to university, Geoff to study, Steven to do research to write dry, scholarly tomes. He did do some historical research so that Bella could write some of the historical, bodice ripping, slightly pornographic books for which she actually had a following.

She was making respectable money churning out three to four books per year. Naturally she had a penname. She also refused to do book tours, interviews whether for newspapers, magazines and definitely not on television. She told her publisher it was because she wanted to maintain an air of mystery which would further help the sale of her books, but also because she didn't want to embarrass her husband or son.

Her publisher kept insisting that she could really clean up if she did book signings or readings because, "You really do have a sexy, enticing voice" but she still kept refusing.

Bella derived great satisfaction because although Andromeda had her law career, Narcissa had had a successful career as a Pureblood wife/hostess in demand and now a Muggle career "renting out rooms" she, Bella, was a popular, sensual writer, the type who inspired….all sorts of things.

Best of all NO ONE KNEW! Andromeda and Narcissa (not to mention their late mother and aunt) would be HORRIFIED. Since when did Bellatrix know anything about sex or passion (other than torturing or killing people)?

Both her sisters knew the truth about Bella's marriage. It was an arranged marriage, of course, but quite necessary. The House of Black was "Toujours Pur" and would stay that way. Unfortunately, the Blacks, although they would not admit it, knew what too much in-breeding did.

Orion and Walburga were first cousins and had married because…well there wasn't much in the marriage market at the time of they were of marriageable age which the Blacks considered worthy. Fortunately, Sirius and Regulus turned out fine. Fine of form, healthy, possessed of magic, intelligent, powerful and sane enough for the House of Black.

But no one outside of the family knew about the third son. The boy was born and mercifully died the same day of natural causes. He was not even given a name as abominations did not deserve a name. He had been so deformed that after the tortious birth, Walburga was unable to conceive again. Not that she would want to after birthing…that thing.

Cygnus Black, the father of the three Black sisters had been fortunate to marry outside the family, having married Druella Rosier. It was even a love match – of sorts – in that they didn't openly despise each other, got along very well and never, ever tried to kill each other, not even once! The only tragedy in their marriage was the birth of three girls.

Granted the girls were all healthy, well formed, would probably be beautiful from the looks of things, and most important of all, were recognized as having magic at birth. Being daughters of the House of Black, they would have many suitors. Since their uncle who was the Lord Black eventually had sons born to his marriage (it had taken Walburga a long time to conceive), the family name was assured.

But Cygnus, like any normal Pureblood wizard, desired a son. Once Sirius Black had been born, it spurred Cygnus on to try again. Once again it was not a well-known fact outside the family that there had been three more children born to Cygnus and Druella after Narcissa's birth. Two had been girls (sigh), but one had died due to complications at birth and one was born deformed and died…shortly thereafter. Finally a boy was born but like his unnamed cousin, he mercifully died due to horrible birth defects.

The Family had a conference and it was decided that this generation would marry Purebloods as distantly related to them as possible. The only stipulation, of course, was that they be Purebloods. A search had started overseas for both boys as the available Pureblood girls in their age bracket were not acceptable.

The Black girls had no such problems. Bellatrix was betrothed to Rudolphus Lestrange as a Black hadn't married a Lestrange in the past 200 years due to disparities of ages. Rudolphus was more interested than Bella as, if the truth be known (and it wasn't) she didn't particularly want to marry anybody. But it was her duty so she would go through with it.

Andromeda was to marry Lucius Malfoy until she ran off with Ted Tonks. The fact that she totally despised Lucius Malfoy might have led her to look elsewhere. So that was why Narcissa got to marry Lucius instead of the other person who had been chosen for her. Fortunately they got along very well and developed a respectable affection for each other.

Andromeda was happy in her marriage and Narcissa was content. Bella, however, was not. After the miscarriage of her baby and being told she would probably not ever conceive again, her marriage had fallen apart. Rudolphus was, to put it bluntly, no great shakes in bed. He didn't even try, he just performed his duty.

Since there was now no reason to continue "doing his duty" with his wife, he sought his satisfaction elsewhere. He released her from her obligations and didn't give her a second thought. There was even some discussion about a divorce but then Bella had been initiated by the Dark Lord. Not that kind of initiation, you dirty-minded gutter rat, _she was given the Mark_.

However, she did develop a crush, an infatuation, a fixation, a desire, a hunger, a passion, a lust, an obsession, an overwhelming, unquenchable – OH HELL SHE WANTED HIS BODY IN ANY AND ALL WAYS, AND SHE WANTED IT CONTINUOUSLY!

She had dreams which no decent Pureblood witch would dare to have (Pureblood wizard, yes, witch no. [Refer to the wet dreams of Sirius Black, which he once tried to have published and released in paperback]). She had never, ever felt anything so….intense. Every time she looked at him her desire grew. Many times she could not catch her breath if he so much as looked at her.

The dreams she had of him rivaled anything that even Ilaria Zabini was famous for! In fact, Bella thought she could probably give that skank some pointers in deprav….ah in love.

Not only had Bella thrown all of her energy, power and talent into the cause, she now turned her thoughts to how she could attract the attention of her Dark Lord.

It had been his power which had first attracted her. He was a commanding presence and was for everything the Pureblood life stood for. He was fighting for their rights and the rights of the Old Ways, the esoteric and beauty which was true magic. Whereas she had never believed in and had scoffed at the tales of brave knights in shining armor fighting for what was all good, true, worthwhile and beautiful, HE became such a knight. HE was everything and all and then so much more.

She tried to hide her passion, but it was evident. She channeled her lust into a passion for his cause. She fought the fiercest and longest during the attacks. She spent her spare time (which was a lot nowadays) going through the Black library looking up spells, curses and hexes of the most…. inventive kind. She practiced night and day, involved herself in politics, and threw lavish parties which rivaled Narcissa's to alert people to the Dark Lord and his crusade. She snuck around both Diagon Alley and Knockturn Alley listening to conversations for anything which could be of use.

She just did anything and everything she could think of to make herself invaluable to him and to get him to notice her, to use her, to avail himself of her, to…get him to love her.

But he didn't, not really. He praised her, made her a member of his Inner Circle, even listened to her ideas and as far as he was able, gave her a kind of respect. Damn it! He acted like a perfect gentleman in that way, but that was not the way she wanted him to act.

He did it purposely, she just knew it. He'd look at her and stare directly into her eyes with his still beautiful but noticeably changing eyes. He'd hold that look for a moment or two just to torture her. Okay, she loved it, but it wasn't the kind of attention she desired.

Damn it, he flirted with her in his own unique way, sending chills down her spine and fire up her…ahem. It was sweet torture and it was all he would ever give her emotionally.

Physically however! Well physically he'd Crucio her when _she was bad_. It hurt worse than the pains of hell, because it was supposed to, but to Bella it represented the warmth and depth of his feelings for her. She would take what she could get just as long as it was from HIM.

And what did that miserable, wimpy Rudolphus think about all of this? No he wasn't jealous like any decent husband should be. He tried using it to his advantage because if his neglected wife was a member of the Inner Circle, he was also given a position on it. It stoked his ego because everybody thought his wife was the sex partner of the Dark Lord and "Rudolphus allowed it."

Yeah, right, like Rudolphus could do anything about it if Voldie decided to shag his wife. But Rudolphus liked to think he was allowing the Dark Lord to have his way with Bella. Rudolphus also knew that "Bella wasn't getting any" but since the other Death Eaters had nasty thoughts and dirty minds, it suited Rudolphus just fine and when Voldie wasn't looking Rudolphus strutted around and brag a bit. He was happy and felt important.

At least he was happy and felt important until Lucius ratted him out to Voldie. Bella liked being Cruciated but Rudolphus did not. Rabastan kept trying to tell him it was his own fault but older brothers never listen to younger brothers and Rudolphus tried to get his revenge.

Rudolphus learned that Voldie Cruciated Bella but Bella did the Cruciating in the Lestrange house, not her husband. He tried doing it once and Rabastan had to brew his brother a regular supply of healing potions because Rudolphus kept doing all these stupid things.

Bella sighed after reminiscing. There had been such good times all those years ago. Her passion for her Dark Lord was the force behind her writing and many a woman reading her books felt a glimmer of the flames of Bella's inner fire and then the despair and coldness of her rejection.

Bella had just put the finishing touches on her latest book. All it needed was a title, but she usually let the publisher, or rather one of his female assistants who read the book, name it. She was already getting an idea for the next book.

Steven and Geoff were under strict orders to never, ever dare read one of Bella's books. They wisely obeyed her out of respect and fear. Rabastan might have been a Death Eater and Harry had seen and done things no one should have seen or done especially if they were under the age of 15, but Bella's imagination was something they didn't want to confront.

Oh how they would all laugh if they ever found out that Hermione Granger was a rabid fan of the She Who Must Walk Alone series.

Bella was making herself a cup of tea when she felt it. At first it was a slight warmth, then a tingle and then there was a sudden fire and a flash of pain. Bella quickly grabbed her left arm and rolled up her sleeve.

She and Rabastan had had Muggle plastic surgery to remove the faint dark mark. They knew it would never be gone unless their Master was well and truly dead, but the surgery had hidden the tattoo from the general public and if any Auror found them and checked for glamours it would reveal the mark.

Now an outline of the mark appeared on her arm, faintly but it had appeared, ruining the Muggle surgery. She stood in the kitchen clutching her arm. She was elated that her Lord, her Master, her Love was back. Then she was frightened because her Lord and Master was back.

She would happily flee to him, kneel down at his feet, kiss his robes, welcome his Cruciatus with a smile on her face and begging for more. She would joyfully serve him with her last ounce of strength to the moment of her death. The bliss she would feel when next she beheld him could not be described in any of her books as mere words could not express the rapture she would feel at their reunion. She thought that she must faint just thinking about it.

Then the phone rang.

It was Rabastan who just said, "He's back isn't he?"

"Yes" she said in a husky voice. "He is. He calls us and we must obey and fly to his side."

"And what of Geoff?"

Bella's heart froze, the blood in her veins seeming to follow that organ's lead.

"Geoff" she whispered.

"My baby Geoff."

FINIS

TO BE CONTINUED IN KINGDOM OF FOOLS


End file.
